Beyond the Lens: Mohammed Adedayo documents Africa

By Henry Akubuiro
In the bustling markets of Ebute Metta, Lagos, a centuries-old medical practice unfolds in plain sight, yet remains largely invisible to the outside world. Beneath makeshift stalls, Hausa traditional practitioners remove uvulas and tonsils with simple instruments; no anaesthesia and no formal medical certification. For many patients, however, these market stalls are not symbols of ignorance but of survival. When hospitals are overcrowded, appointments are weeks away and pain cannot wait, these practitioners become the closest and often the only option.
It is this complex intersection of tradition, healthcare and survival that captured the imagination of filmmaker an...