For more than 200 years, a tactile writing system created by the Frenchman Louis Braille when he was 15 years old has allowed persons with visual impairment to read and write with independence and dignity.
The writing system named after its inventor opens up opportunities for education, employment and social engagement.
Yet, in Malawi, this essential system remains out of reach for many who need it most.
Sandress Singini, a teacher with visual impairment at Ekwendeni Community Day Secondary School, struggles to access essential services such as banking and healthcare.
Without Braille-friendly public services, he depends on others to read sensitive information, compromising his privacy and dignity.
“If you don’t want your spouse, children, relatives or friends to read personal documents, you have no choice but to disclose it anyway,” he says “Whenever I go to Mzuzu for banking, I spend more because I have to pay for the guide’s transport too.”
Singini says lack of Braille signage and materials in public spaces makes daily tasks and access to information and job advertisement, challenging.
He calls for inclusive services, saying: “It’s like persons with visual impairment in the country doesn’t matter.”
The 2018 census shows that visual impairment is the most prevalent disability in the country, affecting around 49 percent of people with disabilities.
SightSavers estimates that around 200 000 people in Malawi are blind, with 80 percent at least aged 50.
Yet fewer than half of them use Braille, a gap the Malawi Union of the Blind (MUB) blames on limited materials and training institutions.
MUB president Jack Tsankhwimbi says low government funding fuel a scarcity of Braille materials, leaving many people without support.
“There are too few Braille materials and most persons with visual impairment, including students, are left without support,” he says. “This is happening at a time many a growing number of the elderly are losing sight due to chronic illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes and strokes, but cannot access to Braille training institutions.”
A rapid assessment of avoidable blindness found that 3.3 percent of people aged 50 and above in the Southern Region were blind.
Tsankhwimbi urges government to reopen Mulanje Vocational Training, which used to train newly blind individuals.
“If it remains closed for five or more years, thousands will continue to struggle with illiteracy, dependency, and exclusion from essential services,” warns the campaigner. “Government should also establish at least two or three additional centres to meet the growing demand.”
Low access to these life-changing services undermines the country’s pledge to uphold the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and Persons with Disabilities Act of 2024.
Articles 21 and 24 of the CRPD require member states, including Malawi, to provide information in accessible formats like Braille and ensure that visually impaired students receive an education tailored to their needs.
This gap between policy and practice also contradicts Malawi 2063 of inclusive wealth creation and a high quality of life for all citizens.
As the September 16 General Elections draws closer, the lack of Braille and disability-friendly voting materials raises concerns about political inclusion.
Since 1999, Lezala Sapulaye, 48, a visually impaired registered voter from Chikwawa, has never cast a ballot without someone ticking the boxes on his behalf.
“Voting independently would mean a lot to me. Our laws talk about a secret ballot, but my choice is always an open secret due to lack of Braille materials,” he says, highlighting the need for private, accessible voting.
However, Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) spokesperson Sangwani Mwafulirwa says the statutory body is committed to ensuring an inclusive and accessible electoral process.
He says MEC has slashed nomination fees by 50 percent for candidates with disabilities to encourage participation and urged individuals to disclose disabilities during voter registration for better logistical planning on voting day.
Mwafulirwa adds that MEC has produced Braille election literature for distribution through relevant bodies to ensure accessibility for voters with visual impairments.
“On polling day, we’ll have measures to help people with disabilities vote independently, including tactile ballot templates for the visually impaired,” he says.
Tsankhwimbi commends MEC for producing Braille handbooks, but calls for more copies and additional radio messages for non-Braille users.
However, Malawi Council for Disability Affairs executive director George Chiusiwa says low investment in accessible information is a human rights violation.
He calls for greater effort to make information about recent electoral reforms user-friendly for all.
“True inclusion goes beyond the polling day,” he says. “It’s about empowering visually impaired voters with the knowledge to make informed choices.”
