Helping 250 children and teenagers with albinism in the Republic of Congo start the new school year. This is the new goal of “Sotto lo stesso Sole” (“Under the same sun”), the fundraising campaign promoted by Attiva-Mente San Marino in collaboration with the Association Jhony Chancel pour les Albinos (AJCA) of Brazzaville.
The campaign was launched on International Albinism Awareness Day to support people with albinism in the Republic of Congo, with particular focus on protecting their health. AJCA is in fact engaged in the production and free distribution of sunscreen, essential to prevent the harmful effects of sun exposure. Now, alongside the need to safeguard health, comes the equally pressing need to ensure that younger generations can regularly attend school.
“In recent days AJCA presented us with a new need, just as concrete and urgent: supporting the schooling of 250 children and teenagers with albinism for the 2026-2027 school year, through the purchase and distribution of school kits,” explains Attiva-Mente in a statement.
The project involves a total of 112 children from preschool to primary school and 138 teenagers in middle school (collège). The goal is to provide them with backpacks, notebooks, and all the materials needed to follow their lessons. This need arises in a context where, the San Marino association points out, families’ economic hardships can be compounded by discrimination, stigma, and social exclusion faced by people with albinism.
“Solidarity can then become something very concrete: a cream that protects the skin, a notebook, a backpack, the materials needed to walk into a classroom every morning alongside everyone else,” reads the statement.
Attiva-Mente has therefore decided to extend this new phase of the fundraiser to include the right to education, appealing to citizens, businesses, associations, and other local organizations. The association has not yet specified how many of the 250 young people will actually receive support, as the outcome will depend on how donations progress.
“We don’t know how many of the 250 children we will actually manage to help. But we do know that every contribution can mean one more child with the materials needed to attend school,” the statement continues.
The initiative remains grounded in the principle that inspired it from the start. “This is also the meaning we wanted to give to ‘Under the same sun’ from the very beginning: to remind everyone that rights do not change with latitude. The right to health, to education, to dignity, and to participation belongs to every person, wherever they were born.”
By the end of September, Attiva-Mente also plans to publicly present the project, illustrating the collaboration launched with AJCA, the activities already carried out, and future goals. It will also be an opportunity to take stock of the fundraiser and the resources that can be concretely allocated to people with albinism in the Republic of Congo.
“Protecting a person with albinism from the sun means safeguarding their health. Helping a child with albinism go to school means helping to build their future,” the association concludes.
The “Sotto lo stesso Sole” (“Under the same sun”) fundraiser remains open. Information about the project and how to contribute is available on Attiva-Mente’s dedicated page: Sotto lo stesso Sole.
