It’s believed more than 21 million people are in danger of contracting lymphatic filariasis, a debilitating infection transmitted via mosquito bite.
More than 4.1 million people are also at risk of river blindness, which can cause severe skin irritation, itching, visual impairment and irreversible blindness. It is spread by the bite of infected black flies.
Thanks to the UK aid flagship neglected tropical disease (NTD) programme, Ascend West and Central Africa, as a consortium, Sightsavers along with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM), Mott Macdonald, and the SCI Foundation, is supporting ministries to combat these diseases. In addition to supporting efforts to eliminate lymphatic filariasis and river blindness, the programme is also working to protect communities from schistosomiasis and trachoma.
As part of Sightsavers' inclusive education project, which supports children with visual impairments across Mali, we’ve worked with linguistic expert Dr Issiaka Ballo to translate braille into the local language for the first time.
Ghana has not been spared in the coronavirus crisis, but luckily the country started its response early, with NTD support redirected.
The Ascend West and Central Africa programme partners helped Liberia respond to the COVID-19 crisis. Here, we tell how.
Sightsavers' Sumrana Yasmin explains the cost-effectiveness of eye health interventions and the huge impact good sight has on the global economy.
Sightsavers staff provide a first-hand insight into our work with ministries of health, partner hospitals and volunteers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the first year of the programme, the Ascend West and Central Africa partners have supported health workers and volunteers to deliver mass treatment campaigns that will help tackle high rates of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in Liberia.