President, Dr. Lazarus Chakwera, has revealed that government has set aside K400 million in this year’s budget for the construction of durable houses for people with albinism in the country.
He has since urged for speedy release of the funds.
Chakwera was speaking on Saturday when he attended this year`s commemoration of International Albinism Awareness Day at Chigumula Ground in Nkhotakota District.
He said the allocation of the funds for houses is to ensure that people with albinism in the country are protected.
“The funds need to be released faster, the houses need to be built faster, the protection needs to be felt by those affected, not others who don’t even feel anything and then say everything is alright when it’s not,” he said.
The Malawi leader further asked people in the country to get a better understanding of the condition of albinism so as to discard the myths associated with it,
“Albinism is a genetic condition and should not be mistaken with race, spiritual, social, professional and other aspects,” he said.
The President further singled out stigmatisation, discrimination and violence as the major forms of wrongful acts against persons with albinism and asked Malawians to desist from such.
In her remarks, Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare, Patricia Kaliati commended government for allocating funds for implementation of the National Action Plan for persons with albinism and the disability Trust Funds.
She then appealed to people with albinism to form groups so that they can access loans from the National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF).
Association of People with Albinism (APAM) President, Ian Simbota, said though the killings of people with albinism have reduced, there was no need for complacency.
