Disability news and resources in Africa
This page lists the countries in Africa with resources and recent highlights.
Countries
- Africa
- Botswana
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cabo Verde
- Congo-Kinshasa
- Djibouti
- East Africa
- Egypt
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Guinea-Bissau
- Kenya
- Lesohto
- Liberia
- Libya
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Rwanda
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Somalia
- South Africa
- South Sudan
- Sudan
- Tanzania
- Tunisia
- Uganda
- West Africa
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Recent Highlights
In Africa:
Why do deaf Africans struggle to access their rights? A brief look at sign-language use in several countries. (2023, DW)
Mapping and Recommendations on Disability-Inclusive Education. In Eastern and Southern Africa (2023, UNICEF)
Cross-Country Brief on Trends in Inclusive Education (2023, Mastercard Foundation)
In Djibouti:
Searching for identity “The award-winning Djiboutian author, Abdourahman Waberi, shares his reflections on writing, power and living with a disability.” (2023, Africa is a Country)
In Egypt:
How ancient history resists our stereotypes Debrief discussion of Tutankhamun and disability in ancient Egypt. (2023, Disability Debrief)
In Ghana:
A Path to Belonging for People with Psychosocial Disabilities in Ghana | Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch goes back to a “prayer camp” to find someone still shackled one year after their previous visit:
‘Pamela was just as I last saw her, only emaciated, her eyes enormous on her gaunt face. When I asked her about life at the camp, her face crumpled, and she started to cry. “They don’t allow us to go to church,” she said. “That pains me. I want to go to church.” I was astounded: this was a prayer camp after all. A staff member told her: “But look at you, Pamela. How can I allow you to go to church?”’ (2023, Human Rights Watch)
In Kenya:
Kenya’s troubled 60-year mental health journey from colonial institutions and laws to those making change today. (2023, The Nation)
In Nigeria:
Schisms in the Church A Debrief feature on the disconnect faced by deaf worshippers in Nigeria:
“This piece explores the challenges of deaf persons in the church. It draws from my own life and the experiences of other deaf folks, most of them close friends and acquaintances I met within the deaf community. We often talk about what causes our disconnection in church. We are treated as after-thoughts, objects of charity, sub-par humans, or needing healing. But we know we are much more.” (Apr, Disability Debrief)
Girls with Disability Suffer, Rejected in Lagos Special Schools a detailed look at a lack of accessible and hygienic toilets and hygiene facilities. (Jan, This Day)
I Voted: Benedicta Oyèdayọ̀ Oyèwọlé Documents the Challenges Nigerians with Disabilities Faced Voting in February’s Elections. (2023, Disability Justice Project)
Decent work inaccessible to most workers with disabilities: a survey of 600 workers with disabilities. “Most of the 660 workers surveyed are self-employed and in the informal sector. Almost half of respondents earn less than Nigeria’s minimum wage and say their work environment is not accommodating to their disability.” (2023, Solidarity Center)
In South Africa:
“There is no dignity in poverty and even worse in disabled poverty” First-person account of barriers to economic inclusion. (2023, Daily Vox)
In South Sudan:
South Sudan signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. (2023, LFTW)
In Sudan:
“We are not alone”. A Debrief feature on disabled people in Sudan's conflict. A call for solidarity: “desperate circumstances, the institutions that let them down, and the systems of love that hold things together.” Also available in Arabic. (2023, Disability Debrief)
In Tanzania:
Child's father, Priest among nine arrested in murder of girl with albinism. Two-year old Asimwe Novath was abducted at the end of May and her body was found a bit over two weeks later. (Jun, The Citizen) See more about the search.