His name is Janvier Alfred Ngalle and he says that he is proud to be the first blind man to enter a legal profession. Indeed, the young man, 37, has just passed the Professional Lawyer's Certificate. So, once he takes the oath, he will be added to Cameroon’s bar.

But, before the day of his oath-taking, the young man litigates mainly in the tribunal of Douala. Armed with a white cane and his laptop  (with JAWS, the screen reading software installed on it), he has been taking part in the court hearing since January 2015 when he was sworn as a law clerk. He can now open his own practice.  

When he was interviewed on phone, Janvier Alfred Ngalle said that law was his passion and on the other hand, he wanted to be a source of inspiration and motivation for many disabled people. According to the new lawyer, those people can now see that everything is possible with hard work and commitment.

Asked if he was not discriminated as a blind lawyer, he said this: “When I meet colleagues or clients who don’t know that I am blind for the first time, they are surprised at first. My work, however, put them at ease”.

Monique Ngo Mayag