A Fond Farewell to Mr. Kandeh

It is with sadness in our hearts that we must announce the passing of our beloved friend and colleague Musa Kandeh.

With his charming humour and razor sharp wit Musa Kandeh was a much loved member of the Legs4Africa team and disability advocate in The Gambia

Whilst we mourn a significant loss and extend our condolences to his family and friends we find joy and gratitude in reflecting on the profound impact of his work.

Musa, in the foreground, was passionate about promoting the rights of persons with disabilities in The Gambia. As the President of The Gambia Amputee Association he participated, with members of the association, in The Gambia’s first disability rights March in 2018

Musa will continue to be a highly respected member of his community, as well as a highly respected member of our team. His array of professional and personal experiences allowed him to easily relate to his peers and colleagues and the breadth of his experiences saw him fall naturally in to an advisory role within Legs4Africa. Staff from both sides of the pond looked upon him as an authority figure, although the authority he carried was complemented by warmth and humour in perfect quantities.

Mr.Kandeh brought a wealth of knowledge to his roles within The Gambia Amputee Association and Legs4Africa with his passion for advocacy work being the driving force behind has actions. Musa believed unequivocally that every Gambian deserves fair access to education, job opportunities and to be heard. As such he regularly spoke on local radio stations with other disability advocates to amplify the voices of persons with disability.

The first to welcome you in to his home, Musa often hosted meetings in his compound to discuss ideas and solutions to issues being faced by his fellow amputees

Musa exuded open-mindedness, loving nothing more than to host an ideas sharing session over a bowl of domoda (Gambian peanut stew). A progressive thinker and collaborative creator Mr.Kandeh’s unique brand of change-making has contributed to elevating the amputee community as much as it has guided Legs4Africa’s work in The Gambia.

Whilst Mr.Kandeh took his mission very seriously he never took himself too seriously and his legacy lives on in those of us he inspired with his passion, resilience, intellect and belly laughs.

As Musa’s good friend and fellow advocate Alieu Touray so eloquently put it, “Yes he is gone but his spirit is here to join us to move forward to achieve all our goals”