“Before now, I depended on begging to make a living. Every morning I would trek 5 to 10 kilometers daily to beg for alms. Life as a person affected by leprosy was far from easy.
Although I went out everyday, i occasionally got lucky, some days I would return home empty handed. Nobody wanted to help. But on one faithful morning, I was about leaving the house when I encountered the people from TLM Nigeria. That was the day my life changed. Although they didn’t give me and my fellow leprosy affected women money, we were trained on hair cream and soap making.
They didn’t stop at that, after the training they gave us start up materials which I used to produce soap and hair cream. I still can not believe that, I Saratu Musa can now make a weekly income of over N2000 naira or more. My children and I have a better life. I am so grateful to TLMN for helping to transform my life. I am now a business woman.”
These were the translated words of Saratu Musa, a member of Adamawa community, in Sokoto State. Saratu was a beneficiary of the “Support SHG members to Acquire Vocational Education and Basic Asset for Income Generation” activity, an intervention carried out as part of the activities on the EDPOSD project.
Prior to this time, Saratu had no means of livelihood but depended solely on providence and the goodwill of passersby. However, thanks to the The Leprosy Mission Sweden who supported this project, Saratu has began putting her newly acquired skill to work. She has produced and is already selling the first batch of her hair cream. Saratu’s life has changed!
SARATU’S STORY – A New Dawn for Saratu
"Before now, I depended on begging to make a living. Every morning I would trek 5 to 10 kilometers daily to beg for alms. Life as a person affected by leprosy was far from easy."