Identifying Family and Community-based Care Solutions for Children with Albinism

In sub-Saharan Africa, discrimination and stigmatisation, lack of access to appropriate health services and inclusive education, the risk of ritual attacks, and the perceived burden of care, mean that some children with albinism are being placed in residential care or boarding schools by the State or families, purportedly for their care and protection. Whilst there is a wealth of information available in the respective areas of “albinism” and “care”, there has been little attention as to how the two areas intersect and how they overlap with questions of health, education, social protection, justice and disability rights. Equally, there has been limited critical attention to the experience and perspectives of children with albinism, and their lives in African contexts (Franklin, 2018), which means that interventions to better support, empower and protect them remain elusive. Our article responds to the particular situation of children with albinism who are vulnerable to attack or ritual abuse in sub-Saharan Africa and considers how these children should best be cared for.