Discrimination against albinos is a serious problem throughout sub-Saharan Africa, and the story is the same in northeast Nigeria.

MalaLa’ari is albino, and was a farmer. Speaking with Radio Ndarason International reporter Hadiza Dawud this week, he said that the discrimination against them (albino) is very obvious by both adults and children. After years of being a bachelor, Mala married an albino last year and his wife gave birth to a new albino baby boy. “Yes, people are discriminating us, they call us all sort of names and children don’t respect us at all, they see us as monsters or masquerades,” Mala added.

Mala said he don’t like going to occasions, because many people are not pleased with them, while other don’t want to eat with them in same plate.

He added that, people making life difficult for their children, said “our younger ones cannot go outside and have fun with their counterparts, many children don’t want to play with them, while parents command their children not to play with our kids. It is obvious people don’t want to marry our daughters and you cannot do anything about that” added Mala.

Mala explained that he is a farmer, but as an albino he cannot work under the sun because it damages his skin. He  called on the government to ameliorate their sufferings.

The RNI reporter also asked some youth in Maiduguri whether they would marry an albino or not. According to one of the respondents Massa Mari, “I don’t care whether she is an albino or not, once I am satisfied with her, I don’t have any issue”. But for Umar Ahmed, the story is different, “Let me be honest, I cannot marry a girl who is an albino”, he said.

Responding to these comments, the director of women affairs and social development in Borno state, a body responsible for people with special needs, said the Borno State government is aware of the situation and will ‘soon’ respond to their demands.

She called on people to desist from discriminating against them, as government will not tolerate this. She added that government is working hand-in-hand with traditional and religious institutions to address the problem.

Dermatologist at Mamman Shuwa Memorial Hospital Maiduguri, Abbagana Alhaji Grema Ngala, said that albinism is a genetic disorder characterized by a lack of melanin in the skin, hair, and eyes. It is incurable, he added, and can be inherited if both parents are albinos. If one of the parents is not albino, he said, there is a tendency for the couple to have non-albino children.