MARKING INTERNATIONAL ALBINISM AWARENESS DAY!

Our Lahash travel team wrapped up the ministry partner visits with a trip to Albino Peacemakers in northern Tanzania. Our East Africa Director Edwin Angote shared the following update on the good work happening there under the vision and care of Sister Martha Mganga as a commemoration of International Albinism Awareness Day.

Our last stop during our trip in East Africa was Arusha, Tanzania, where one of our partner ministries – Albino Peacemakers – is located. The ministry is led by Sister Martha. She is an amazing woman who has taken the initiative to care for and protect people like her who were born with albinism. A few years back, Lahash partnered with Albino Peacemakers to care for children living with albinism. In one of our meetings with Martha and her team on this trip, they narrated how impactful the program has been to the community they serve. 

They have recorded great progress since we started the partnership. Together we’ve seen great changes in the lives of children, especially in spiritual growth. The kids have been consistently learning about the love of God. They are also getting assistance with their physical health to care for the effects of the hypo-pigmentation of their skin. People with albinism have a special risk of skin cancer which reduces their life expectancy, especially in poor communities in tropical areas where solar radiation is very intense. There is a scarcity of resources for them to get what they need. Through the Lahash Sponsorship Program, the kids are able to have hats and sunscreen lotion and protective clothing. They are able to go through their education without any interference. They continue to receive nutritional food supplements through Rice and Beans Month savings. 

However, in addition to the purely medical consequences of this lighter skin, people with albinism face a variety of challenges in different corners of the world. People living with albinism in East Africa face tragic persecution due to a false belief that their body parts can fetch magical powers. Recently there have been cases where people living with albinism were missing, or bodies were found without body parts.