Our work
Awareness, support, advocacy, research, professional engagement and outreach are not separate efforts. Each one feeds the others, and together they change what it means to live with lupus in Africa.
Lupus cannot be diagnosed early if no one has heard of it. We run public campaigns, community education sessions, media engagements and school and workplace talks to increase understanding and challenge the myths and stigma that keep people silent.
Our media partners Citizen TV, NTV Kenya and KBC amplify lupus awareness, public education and the voices of people living with lupus.
We connect people to peer support groups, psychosocial support, practical assistance and reliable information. Support groups run across our Kenyan chapters, and members connect across the continent.
For many people, the support group is where they first meet someone who does not need the symptom explained to them.
Find a support groupWe work to ensure lupus is recognised as a public health priority, and that patients have a seat at the table where health policy, financing and insurance decisions are made. That includes engagement with the Social Health Authority and other national bodies.
Africa should not have to rely solely on evidence generated elsewhere. We document lived experience, contribute patient voice to research, and work toward an African evidence base that reflects African realities.
Research at LFADelayed diagnosis is often a recognition problem. We engage clinicians, nurses, laboratory professionals and community health workers so that lupus is considered earlier and referral pathways are clearer.
We take lupus awareness and screening conversations into communities through chapter activities, hospital visits, wellness days and partner events, reaching people who would never otherwise encounter the word lupus.
Our work in pictures
Select any photograph to view it larger.
Awareness & media
On national television, in virtual sessions and in person, making sure more people have heard the word lupus.
Engaging health professionals
At the Arthrheuma Society of Kenya Scientific Conference 2025 in Kisumu, and with Accord and Intas on affordable access to Mphetas (mycophenolate mofetil).
Community engagement
Wellness camps, community gatherings and practical support, including the Lupus Wellness & Rheumatology Camp 2025 at Mater Misericordiae Hospital.
Advocacy & policy
Taking the experiences of people living with lupus into the rooms where health policy is discussed. What we advocate for.
The LFA model in action
Five functions that reinforce one another across everything we do.
Increase understanding and challenge myths and stigma.
Build peer connection, psychosocial wellbeing and practical support.
Influence policies, financing and health systems.
Generate and use evidence grounded in patient experience.
Help patients navigate and access timely, affordable, quality care.
What this adds up to
Our latest figures, from our newsletter for January to June 2026. They are updated annually, and where a number is still being verified, we say so rather than estimating.
Every programme on this page runs on the generosity of members, donors and partners who believe people with lupus in Africa deserve better.
