What may appear as impossible is becoming a reality as uche Olivia took a bold step
In a new Difficult Conversation Africa Podcast featuring Uche Olivia, the conversation explores how digital platforms have become powerful tools for disability rights advocacy in Nigeria through the lived experience of Uche Olivia Moujekwu, a visually impaired nurse whose career was disrupted by discrimination and lack of reasonable accommodation during a professional medical examination.
After facing systemic barriers and institutional silence, Uche turned to social media and digital storytelling to amplify her voice, seek justice, and draw attention to broader structural failures affecting persons with disabilities. The conversation unpacks how digital advocacy can challenge discrimination, influence public opinion, attract media attention, and push institutions and policymakers toward accountability.
The episode also critically examines web and digital accessibility in Nigeria, highlighting the exclusion faced by visually impaired persons due to poor website and app design, such as lack of screen-reader compatibility, inadequate color contrast, missing captions, and inaccessible interfaces. Through this dialogue, the podcast connects personal experience with national policy gaps, digital inclusion, and the urgent need for accessible technology by design, not as an afterthought. Interest readers can watch full episode here
The lessons
Across Nigeria, persons with disabilities are increasingly turning to digital platforms to confront discrimination, demand accountability, and reclaim their voices in a society where exclusion has long been normalized. From social media campaigns and podcasts to online petitions and digital storytelling, advocates are using technology to spotlight human rights abuses and push for systemic change.
For many disability advocates, digital spaces have become safer and more accessible arenas for civic engagement. Traditional barriers, physical inaccessibility, stigma, and limited representation in mainstream media have often excluded persons with disabilities from public discourse. Online platforms, however, are enabling them to share lived experiences, mobilize allies, and challenge discriminatory policies and practices in real time.
Campaigns highlighting denial of access to education, workplace discrimination, and lack of reasonable accommodation have gained traction on platforms such as X, Facebook, and Instagram. Podcasts and digital town halls led by disability advocates are also amplifying conversations around the implementation of Nigeria’s Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, five years after its passage.
Advocates say digital advocacy has not only increased visibility but has also forced institutions to respond. Several cases of discrimination that might once have gone unnoticed have drawn public attention and official reactions after being exposed online. “When our stories go viral, silence is no longer an option,” one disability rights campaigner said.
Despite the growing impact, challenges remain. Online harassment, limited internet access, and the digital divide continue to restrict participation for many persons with disabilities, particularly in rural communities. Advocates are calling for greater investment in accessible digital infrastructure, inclusive media practices, and stronger enforcement of disability rights laws.
As Nigeria’s civic space increasingly moves online, disability advocates argue that digital tools are no longer optional but essential. In transforming personal stories into collective action, digital voices are not only challenging discrimination, they are reshaping the country’s human rights conversation