By: Andrew Mkonda

Lilongwe, October 23, Mana: A 20-year-old Siyana Kamtengo, one of the people with albinism in Traditional Authority Masula in Lilongwe district has hailed government for constructing houses for people with albinism across the country.

Kamtengo made the remarks Tuesday when officials from the Ministry of Lands and Lilongwe District Council inspected the progress of the project.

"We were not safe. During the night hours, we could hear people wanting to enter into our house to harm us. But with this house, we are now safe," she said.

Kamtengo who stays with her old grandmother then asked government and well-wishers to assist her and the family with a capital so that she can start a small-scale business to sustain the family.

“Our grandmother is old and she doesn’t do anything, but my sister and I are still strong and if we can have capital to start a small business it can really assist us. Our biological father run away from us. We sleep with an empty stomach most of the times because we do not have a reliable source of income to find our basic need,” she said.

Deputy Director in the Ministry of Lands responsible for rural housing Kingsly Lungu expressed satisfaction with the progress of the project saying the contractors are doing a commendable job.

Lungu said it is encouraging that since government started constructing houses for people with albinism, there has been no reported cases of abductions, which means that the security for people with albinism has been strengthened and they feel safe.

“This project is being implemented in all districts across the country apart from Likoma where there is no person with albinism. People are very excited, they feel very secure and safe. We believe that this project will go very far in preventing abductions and inhumane treatment of people with albinism,” he said.

Lungu then disclosed that government is intending to construct 100 houses for people with albinism in five years and it has already managed to construct 67 houses across the country, with Eleven of them being constructed in Lilongwe district.

Government started constructing houses of people with albinism in 2021 and it is now in fourth phase of the project.