Our Approach
At AAN, we believe that at the core of our shared humanity lies the unassailable truth that every person is endowed with inherent dignity and equal rights. This philosophy is the heartbeat of the Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA), a transformative methodology that empowers individuals as rights-holders and demands accountability from states and institutions as duty-bearers. It’s not just a framework; it’s a commitment to inclusive participation, equity, non-discrimination, the rule of law, and transparent access to information. The HRBA is the guiding principle that permeates all of AAN’s work and is the lens through which the Sustainable Development Goals find their most profound expression, ensuring no goal is met unless met for all.
To ensure the sustainability of our movement and its successes, AAN supports the capacity development of human rights defenders (HRDs) and partners in our work. Our capacity development involves:
- Workshops on the HRBA and collaboration with local albinism groups on joint reports and advocacy at the AU and UN;
- Training for key stakeholders from the sectors of health and education to faith-based communities;
- One-on-one support to albinism leaders through in-person visits, video conferencing, and text message, as we journey with them in building local movements for the long-term protection and enjoyment of their human rights; and
- Provide learning exchange opportunities on how to improve advocacy and embark on effective collaborations with other organizations and movements. One of our main tools in this regard are Learning Forums.
Collaboration and partnerships are vital to addressing the complex and wide-ranging issues facing people with albinism in Africa, from the egregious human rights violations to the impacts of climate change, gender-based violence, and health disparities. To maximize our efforts and lay the foundation for sustainable action, we need strong allies. Our partners include government agencies; national human rights institutions; funding partners; academic institutions; civil society, community, and human rights-based organizations; and health care providers, among others. We nurture both formal and informal partnerships, ranging from specific joint ventures on activities within our thematic areas to informal and broad partnerships representing common interests. Through targeted invitations, our Learning Forums are used as a platform to encourage collaborations between AAN, adjacent social justice movements, and our in-country partners.
We believe that data is indispensable to our vision of an inclusive world, free from brutality and discrimination. As such, we:
- Promote research on the situation of people with albinism on a wide spectrum, ranging from complex multi-country, interdisciplinary research to periodic surveys on the operations and status of albinism groups and those they represent;
- Apply research data to all our approaches (how we work), our thematic areas (what we do), and where we work;
- Take a reflective approach to our work to ensure that we hold ourselves accountable while responding to the complex and dynamic realities of people with albinism in Africa and their family members; and
- Maintain a library of more than 500 digital resources in different languages accessible to activists, researchers, the media, and other key stakeholders on our Resources page.