News / Fighting disease /

Accelerate: the story of 2020

The Accelerate programme has reached the end of a year like no other. Through a global pandemic, we’ve innovated and adapted our trachoma work to keep on track.

December 2020

A man wearing a protective mask presents in front of a blackboard next to a dose poleivers training to antibiotics distributers in a classroom at Government Day Secondary School, Jigawa State

Accelerate is supporting governments across 14 African countries to eliminate trachoma, the world’s leading infectious cause of blindness. Here are some of this year’s highlights.

A strong start to 2020

Woman smiles, wearing traditional jewellery, in hut made from branches

In January, we joined the first ever World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day to raise awareness of the group of diseases trachoma belongs to.

Delivering antibiotics

In the first three months of 2020, we supported teams in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria and Zimbabwe to deliver 12.6 million antibiotics to treat and help stop the spread of NTDs.

Reaction to the pandemic

Woman wearing face mask washing hands from a kettle

When COVID-19 struck, field activities were paused. But we immediately started planning ahead. Together with the World Health Organization (WHO), governments and partners, we began developing a risk assessment and mitigation action tool, which would help to safely and quickly resume fieldwork once suspensions were lifted.

Performing in difficult circumstances

In the meantime, in the field, we saw health workers going above and beyond their duties, such as Babacar in Senegal. Under strict COVID-19 safety measures, Babacar continued to perform surgery for trichiasis, the advanced stage of trachoma, on people who came to his clinic.

Celebrating the efforts of health workers

Surgical team standing together outside the clinic

We provided training for more than 30,000 community volunteers this year, including those identifying cases of trachoma and those distributing antibiotics.

Accelerate’s innovative technology

We won a Pierre Fabre Foundation award for our TT (trachomatous trichiasis) Tracker app.

Reducing the need for surgery

Surgeons and surgery patients wearing bandages over their eyes line up for a photograph

We heard the good news that our efforts were contributing to the bigger picture, when the WHO announced that the number of people needing surgery to treat the advanced stage of trachoma had declined from 7.6 million in 2002 to 2 million in 2020.

Remotely, we ramped up our data work

We continued working hard on activities that didn’t need close contact with communities, such as our support to ministries on integrating WASH and NTD data, and bringing together NTD data at the national level.

Back in the field

In July, treatments could be resumed and we supported one million of them in Nigeria . Thanks to our detailed preparation we continued work in the field rapidly, with special safety measures in place.

Design challenge

We adapted personal protective equipment through a face shield design challenge to find the most feasible way to wear magnifying glasses, a face shield and a mask for health workers assessing eyes for trachoma and carrying out surgery – without the protective layers steaming up.

Surveys restart

Investigator taking patient temperature before examination for trachoma

In October in Burkina Faso, we began our first Tropical Data surveys since COVID-19 broke out, with the aim of surveying more than 20,000 people for trachoma.

Adapting to change

Surgeries resumed in Katsina, Nigeria. Each time we resume work we are reviewing all our activities, and using what we learn to adapt work where needed in other areas and countries.

Looking ahead to 2021

A young woman, wearing a mask, sits on a rug in front of her house by her walking stick

We close the year feeling optimistic, with all the countries Accelerate supports ready to continue their journeys towards eliminating trachoma. Together, we are just a few years away from eliminating this ancient disease. Explore the journey of Accelerate from its inception through maps and images in our story map here.

Find out more about the Accelerate programme

About Accelerate

With thanks

A young boy is measured against a dose pole.

We’d like to thank every individual supporter and partner organisation involved in trachoma elimination in 2020. We are especially grateful to the funders of Accelerate:
Children's Investment Fund Foundation
The ELMA Foundation
UK aid
Virgin Unite
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A montage of handwritten letters and photos from Malawi.

Stories / Eye health /

Hear first-hand how people’s lives have been transformed now that trachoma has been eliminated in the country.

Vainesi smiles and claps outside her home in Malawi.

News / Eye health /

Malawi has become the first country in southern Africa to eliminate the infectious eye disease trachoma, as confirmed by the World Health Organization.

September 2022

Ophthalmic nurse Suraju helps a young girl wash her hands using water from a teapot.