More than 2.6 million people live in areas affected by trachoma. We’re working to eliminate the disease in Zambia by distributing medication, providing eye surgery and educating communities about the importance of good hygiene.
Our work in the country also involves making sure eye health services are available for everyone, particularly marginalised groups such as women and people with disabilities. We’ve carried out research into gender and eye health in Zambia to find out how eye problems affect men and women differently, and to learn how we can address these issues. By preventing blindness, we ensure that people can continue to take care of their families, support themselves and earn a living.
We also support inclusive education in Zambia to ensure children with disabilities are able to go to school. A new four-year project launches in February 2022 to improve educational opportunities for children and young people with disabilities in the Chinsali district.
The Global Labor Program, part of the Inclusive Futures initiative, aims to increase the inclusion of people with disabilities and improve labour rights at two large Kenyan companies.
In Kenya, students who have been studying IT as part of a Sightsavers initiative are now looking ahead to their graduation, internships and future careers.
Our country office teams in Pakistan and Kenya spoke to the organisations of people with disabilities they work with about their hopes for the upcoming Global Disability Summit.
Sightsavers worked with the Kenyan government and partners to create the country’s first inclusive data action plan, which will help collect high-quality data about people with disabilities and the barriers they face.
On 21 October 2021, teams in key districts on both sides of the Kenyan-Ugandan border began a mass drug distribution campaign to fight the disease.
Throughout the pandemic, our priority has been to restart our work quickly and safely. Sightsavers staff reveal our how eye care programmes have evolved in the past 18 months.
An inclusive education project in Malawi is challenging stigma and changing lives by enabling young children with disabilities to attend pre-school alongside their peers.
Sightsavers has been working to strengthen eye health services in Mozambique since 2007. Now, new research shows exactly what we have achieved.
A round-up of our work that your donations are helping to support, including news from India, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Malawi.