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Zanzibar's blind turn hands to profit

30 September 2008

Related pages: Tanzania country profile | Millennium Development Goal 8: Trade
 

Mgeni Omar weaving a coconut matMgeni Omar, 49, threads lengths of coconut fibre into a large round mat at the Shangalia shop in Stone Town, the ancient centre of Zanzibar City. To complete just one of these mats will take Mgeni a whole month of delicate handiwork and a great deal of close concentration.

Far from being an easy trade, in other words, but what makes the former primary school teacher's work so extraordinary is that she is blind in both eyes.

Mgeni turned to mat-making when, a few years ago, her failing sight finally cost her the job she loved. And, although she is now well settled in her new career, she couldn't have got here without all the determination she could muster - and the help of a DFID-supported organisation that champions the rights of Zanzibar's blind and partially sighted people.

No second class citizen

Immediately after losing her teaching job, Mgeni fell prey to what she describes as a "deep despair". "I felt that my life had ended," she says now, reflecting on those uncertain days. Despite wanting to work, there were few options for earning money for someone in Mgeni's condition. The many voices telling her that "blind people should stay at home" only added to her alienation.

So, for a year, Mgeni led an empty existence. Having little reason to leave the house, she stayed indoors, her talent and ambition going to waste as her family became more impoverished.

But then, in a stroke of luck, she became aware of a campaign being run by the Zanzibar National Association of the Blind (Zanab). This was all about publicising the basic rights that, all too frequently, blind people don't know they are entitled to.

Making contact with Zanab set Mgeni's life off in a whole new direction. It was through the Association that she learned how to weave and, at a more fundamental level, discovered that her blindness did not mean she was a second class citizen.

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A valuable role

Zanab representative Masoudi Daudi: "The support we offer means blind people are sure not only about their rights but have a renewed confidence about their abilities and value to society." Zanab has three broad aims: building skills amongst blind people, providing information about health, education and employment opportunities, and working to bring about policy changes.

The people who come to Zanab for help are often unclear about what to do next in their lives. But the support they receive ensures that they can go out into the world confident of their abilities and the valuable contribution they have to make. 

As a result of Zanab's work, attitudes are being transformed. For instance, the organisation has worked with the Ministry of Education to train teachers how to read braille, enabling them to understand the needs of pupils with visual impairments.

There have been changes, too, in government health policy. Blind people have been awarded more of the rights they deserve, and hospitals have been instructed to treat them as a priority.

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Sense of achievement

DFID supports Zenab through its funding to the Foundation for Civil Society. This seeks to strengthen small and medium-sized civil society groups in Tanzania, helping the country's poorest and most vulnerable people. 

Mgeni Omar is just one of many thousands who have benefited directly from the work of the Foundation. Though it may sound small, the 50,000 Tanzania shillings (about £22) she earns from her rugs and carpets every month mean she is now better able to look after her family.

And, thanks to her new career, she is no doubt about her place in society - as she is reminded each time she puts the finishing touches to another of her creations.

"I can’t see with my eyes, but I can see with my hands," she says. "I know I can weave nice mats, which makes me proud of my work and proud of my small role in this business."

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Facts and stats

  • Zanab represents around 650 of the estimated 4,200 blind and partially-sighted people living on Zanzibar's two largest islands, Unguja and Pemba. Zanzibar is located in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Tanzania, of which it is a part.
  • The Foundation for Civil Society was launched in 2003. It supports a wide range of organisations, but a common goal is to help people understand laws, policies and their rights as individuals.
  • The Foundation provides individual grants up to 300 million shillings (about £130,435). In the last five years, these grants have added up to more than £9 million.
  • DFID, a founding member of the Foundation, has provided about £2 million over the past five years. DFID will provide another £4 million over the next four years, starting in 2008.

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