‘They wanted her to confess to witchcraft’: ending the chilling effects of dementia stigma in Nigeria

Dr Temitop Farombi works with dementia patients and their families, educating people about the symptoms to counter harmful misconceptions. Photograph: Andrew Esiebo/The Guardian

Early one Sunday morning in January 2020, Dr Temitope Farombi was told a woman in her 70s was in trouble and she needed to come quickly. Farombi, a consultant neurologist, found the woman lying topless in the street in Ibadan, Nigeria, surrounded by a group of 15 people beating her with sticks.

“They wanted her to confess to witchcraft,” says Farombi. “If she didn’t confess, they were going to beat her more.”