The Nigerian student who shaves the hair of autistic children

Chiamaka Dilo, a 23-year-old barber, told the BBC that she experiences discrimination as a woman who works with autistic children and that people wonder why a "beautiful" woman would want to do the job she does.

"Their remarks make me nervous. "They say I might have an autistic child," the microbiology student from Anambra State's south-eastern region told BBC News Pidgin, but "I'm not deterred."

Autistic people in Nigeria are frequently in desperate need of assistance.

Ms. Dilo travels to rural places looking for people with special needs who want haircuts and shaves.

"Since learning how to barb, I've chosen to do it for free for others who can't afford it." However, I found that autistic people are either abandoned or left to suffer " she said.

What pains her the most is seeing some of the children in distress. "They damage themselves... they tear their bodies apart with their hands because they have no idea what they're doing," she explained.