A new app is helping LGBT+ Nigerians access healthcare

Quickcare supports the LGBT+ community in the anti-gay country.

Kenyan gay and lesbian organisations demonstrate outside the Nigerian High Commission in Nairobi on February 7, 2014. Source: (Photo credit should read SIMON MAINA/AFP/Getty Images)

An NGO in Nigeria has launched a new Android app that allows gay people in Nigeria to safely access health care. 

Quickcare was developed by the Initiative for Equal Rights and offers information about STDs, tips for safe-sex and a comprehensive guide to LGBT+ friendly facilities in the country.

Image: Quickcare Source: Quick Care

Same-sex sexual activity is illegal in Nigeria and can be punished with up to 14 years in prison. 

A report published by the Initiative for Equal Rights this year found that 91% of Nigerians do not believe that people are born gay. In the same poll, 56% of respondents said that gay people should be denied access to public services such as health care, housing and education. 

Quickcare is still in the beta testing phase but the resource will be welcomed by the Nigeria's vulnerable LGBT+ community.

Activist Micheal Ighodaro recently spoke about the violence and discrimination he faced in the country because of his sexuality. 

The Initiative for Equal Rights has also produced a video series on the effect homophobia has on families in Nigeria that you can watch below: