A Serbian employer may have an anti-discrimination policy, yet still not believe LGBTQI employees feel fully safe at work. South Africa now has its first reliable estimate of its LGBTI population, but many people still don’t recognise the discrimination LGBTQI communities face. And in Cambodia, researchers estimate that legal marriage equality could contribute up to US$334 million to the national economy within two years.
These findings come from three recent studies by GiveOut grant partners working in very different contexts. Together, they show how community-led research is strengthening advocacy for LGBTQI rights around the world.
Reliable data on sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics remains scarce in many countries. Without it, discrimination often goes undocumented, inequalities remain hidden, and policymakers and service providers have less evidence to inform decisions. By producing rigorous research, GiveOut’s grant partners are helping to change that, turning lived experience into evidence that can influence policy and improve people’s lives.
Western Balkans and Türkiye: when workplace policies fall short
57% of Serbian employers have written anti-discrimination policies, but only 21% believe LGBTQI staff feel fully safe at work. In North Macedonia, researchers contacted more than 100 companies for the study and received almost no responses.
GiveOut grant partner ERA – LGBTI Equal Rights Association for Western Balkans and Türkiye has published seven country policy papers examining LGBTQI people’s experiences at work in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Türkiye. Each report was produced by a national partner organisation working directly with LGBTQI communities.
Although each country presents a different context, the research reveals common structural challenges. In Serbia, employers reported relatively high levels of formal anti-discrimination procedures, yet far fewer believed LGBTQI employees actually felt safe in their workplaces. In North Macedonia, the lack of engagement from large employers became a significant finding in itself, highlighting how difficult conversations around LGBTQI inclusion in the workplace remain.
The reports also point to widespread underreporting of discrimination. Across every country studied, LGBTQI employees described similar barriers to reporting incidents, including a lack of confidence that complaints would lead to meaningful action. Collectively, the findings suggest that creating genuinely inclusive workplaces requires far more than policies on paper, it requires trust, accountability, and implementation.
South Africa: progress, but not parity
An estimated 5.3% of South Africans (around 2.39 million people) identify as LGBTI. Over the past decade, the proportion of people who believe same-sex relationships are “always wrong” has fallen from 66% to 52%.
GiveOut grant partner The Other Foundation, in partnership with the Human Sciences Research Council, has published Admission Reserved. Based on responses from 3,285 people, the nationally representative study is the first to provide a reliable estimate of South Africa’s LGBTI population while tracking how public attitudes have changed over the past decade.
The findings point to meaningful progress. Today, 60% of South Africans believe LGBTI people deserve equal rights, reflecting a significant shift since the Foundation’s landmark Progressive Prudes study.
However, the report also highlights the limits of legal progress and changing public attitudes. Family and cultural acceptance have shifted little over the past decade, and around half of respondents still do not believe LGBTQI people experience violence or harassment in their communities, a striking gap between public perception and the realities reported by LGBTQI people themselves. As Constitutional Court Justice Jody Kollapen observed at the report’s launch, laws alone cannot reach “the recesses of our minds.”
Cambodia: making the economic case for equality
Legal marriage equality could contribute an estimated US$83–334 million to Cambodia’s economy within two years.
GiveOut grant partner Rainbow Community Kampuchea Organisation (RoCK), working with the think tank Future Forum, explores this question in Unlocking Potential: The Economic Benefits of Legal Marriage Equality for Cambodia. Drawing on international evidence, including experiences from Thailand and Taiwan, the report models the potential economic impact of legal recognition across tourism, investment, the wedding industry, household financial security, and workplace productivity.
Rather than focusing solely on rights, the research demonstrates how equality can also contribute to national development. By framing marriage equality as both a human rights issue and an economic opportunity, it provides policymakers with an additional evidence-based case for reform.
The report’s launch reflected this broader conversation. Cambodian Senior Minister Keo Remy welcomed the findings as an opportunity to strengthen investment and Cambodia’s international standing, while others argued that broader public dialogue should accompany any legislative change.
Why this research matters
Three countries. Three different research questions. Three different approaches, yet each of these studies has the same underlying goal of building the evidence base that grassroots organisations need to advocate effectively for change.
Whether improving workplace inclusion, tracking changing public attitudes or making the economic case for equality, each study equips advocates with something more powerful than anecdote. It provides credible evidence that can shape policy, influence decision-makers, and strengthen campaigns for lasting change.
None of this happens without sustained support for the organisations producing this work.
*GiveOut generally uses “LGBTQI” to describe our community. In this article, where we cite specific statistics from Admission Reserved, we’ve used “LGBTI” instead, as this is the term the report itself uses to define and measure who it counted. This is to ensure the figures accurately reflect what was actually measured