What Sightsavers achieved in 2021
In a year dominated by the pandemic, Sightsavers once again reached some remarkable milestones. Learn how your support has helped to change lives.
January
Three Sightsavers nominees from Tanzania were honoured in the prestigious 2020 IAPB Vision Excellence Awards. Ophthalmic nurse Anande Swai and cataract surgeons Dr Sencodri Njau (pictured) and Dr Upendo Mwakabalile were rewarded for their work as part of the VISION 2020 initiative, spearheaded by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness. Read about their achievement
January
COVID-19 continued to have a huge impact worldwide throughout 2021, yet Sightsavers and partners were able to support governments to deliver millions of treatments to combat neglected tropical diseases. Sightsavers director of NTDs Simon Bush said: “It is vital that our work continues in these challenging times. We need to make sure we support the most marginalised communities even when times are difficult.” Our NTD work during COVID-19
February
British independent jewellery brand Liv Thurlwell launched a range of Valentine’s bracelets featuring braille writing, with a donation made to Sightsavers for every bracelet sold. The handmade silver and gold bracelets are embossed with the word ‘Love’ in braille. Read about the range
March
Sightsavers hosted an inclusive data event to share insights on how to collect data that includes everyone, regardless of age, sex, disability and other characteristics. The main themes were effective data disaggregation, ensuring that data is owned locally, and integrating data collection into existing roles and services. More about the event
April
The Gambia became the second country in sub-Saharan Africa to eliminate trachoma, ensuring millions of people will no longer have their sight threatened by the disease. Sightsavers has supported the government of The Gambia since 1986, when a survey found trachoma was the third leading cause of blindness in the country. How we helped to eliminate trachoma in The Gambia
May
Sightsavers called for girls with disabilities to be prioritised in education as part of the G7 Girls’ Education Declaration, which aims to get 40 million more girls into education in low and lower middle income countries by 2026. We called on world leaders to ensure that commitments are met to achieve these bold targets. Read the G7 story
June
More than 21,000 supporters of Sightsavers’ Equal World campaign from 119 countries signed an open letter calling on the leaders of the G7 to meet their commitments to inclusive education for children with disabilities, particularly girls, who are often disadvantaged on the grounds of gender as well as disability. Read about the letter
June
At the 14th UN disability conference, Sightsavers delivered a video statement calling for disability rights to be upheld in the global pandemic response. In the statement, Sightsavers head of policy Hannah Loryman said: “Exclusion is still built into the systems that affect everyone’s ability to live a fulfilled and independent life, and this is made is even more severe in times of crisis.” Read our statement
July
Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame, Sightsavers’ advocacy adviser for social inclusion, received the World Blind Union Women’s Empowerment Award for her disability work. Presented at the World Blindness Summit, the award is given to blind or partially sighted women who have made an outstanding contribution to empower women. Read about Getty’s award
July
The world’s largest surveys into infectious disease reached an important milestone, with Sierra Leone becoming the 50th country to be surveyed for trachoma. The initiative, known as Tropical Data, has examined one person for trachoma every 26 seconds since it began in 2012. Read the news story
August
Sightsavers’ Rasak Adekoya was named as a One Young World ambassador for his work tackling the inequalities faced by people with disabilities. Rasak is the programme officer for Inclusion Works in Nigeria, which addresses the barriers that prevent millions of people with disabilities from finding mainstream jobs. Read about Rasak’s award
August
Sightsavers’ largest neglected tropical disease programme, Ascend, drew to a close. During its two years, the programme made great progress in the fight to eliminate diseases such as trachoma and river blindness in West and Central Africa. More on Ascend
September
After years of advocacy work through Sightsavers’ Equal World campaign, Mali passed a new law that protects the rights of people with disabilities, so they can claim their rights and access employment, education and social benefits equally. About Mali’s disability rights law
September
Sightsavers researcher Kareen Atekem (pictured) was recognised for her work on a new project to control and eliminate two neglected tropical diseases. Her project involves developing a new trap for flies that spread a parasitic disease which poses a major barrier to eliminating river blindness. More on Kareen’s award
October
Sightsavers staff, partners and supporters around the world celebrated World Sight Day on 14 October, to help raise awareness of the importance of access to good eye care. Country offices ran free eye screening services and organised awareness events, while our supporters and partners shared key messages on social media. Read our highlights
November
For the sixth year in a row, charity evaluator GiveWell named Sightsavers as one of its top charities for our deworming programmes. These programmes treat children for schistosomiasis and intestinal worms: parasitic infections that can cause severe illness. Sightsavers and GiveWell
November
On 30 November, our generous supporters raised more than $90,000 during our Giving Tuesday appeal. Donations made on Giving Tuesday are matched and doubled so that individual gifts go twice as far, helping to protect and restore the sight of many more people. About the appeal
November
November also marked the end of the seven-year COUNTDOWN research programme, which focused on several neglected tropical diseases. It encouraged people to speak out about their illnesses and how they would like to be treated, enabling researchers to investigate cost-effective ways to control the diseases. Read the COUNTDOWN story
December
Sightsavers ended the year on a high by winning a prestigious Zero Project award for our accessibility audit pack. It includes guidance on how to carry out an audit of healthcare facilities, as well as recommendations on accessibility standards and examples of best practice. About the award
What else has Sightsavers achieved in the past year?
Read our news and blogs
Sightsavers pledges at least US$25 million to help beat neglected tropical diseases
The funding, which will be spent between now and 2025, will help to protect millions of people from the harmful effects of NTDs.
Sightsavers’ Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame re-elected to UN disability committee
Gertrude, who was nominated by the government of Ghana, was elected alongside five other women and will serve on the committee until 2026.
WHO guide aims to help countries tackle global eye care crisis
The guide provides a framework and technical tools to help countries prioritise eye health issues and deliver high-quality, inclusive eye care services.
