News

Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame speaking into a microphone.
News / Disability and inclusion /

Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame elected chair of UN disability committee

Gertrude, who is Sightsavers’ global advocacy manager for social inclusion, becomes the first African woman to lead the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

March 2023
A Polaroid-style photo of a young girl smiling, alongside illustrations of a Mali stamp and a knight chess piece.
News /

Voices from 2022: our year in review

Discover what Sightsavers has achieved in the past year – as told by the people who accomplished it, and the people whose lives were transformed.

December 2022
Nanny Powers
News / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers launches campaign to ratify African disability rights treaty

The African Disability Protocol (ADP) addresses disability rights issues specific to people with disabilities living in African countries.

October 2022
Simon Bush.
News / Fighting disease /

Sightsavers director rewarded for his work on neglected tropical diseases

Sightsavers’ Simon Bush has received a lifetime achievement award for his work on river blindness, and has been named president of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

October 2022
Vainesi smiles and claps outside her home in Malawi.
News / Eye health /

Trachoma is eliminated in Malawi

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
The Queen smiles as she greets staff.
News /

Sightsavers pays tribute to Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth was the patron of our sister organisation in the UK and her steadfast support for Sightsavers gave tremendous validity to our cause.

September 2022
A man with a bandage over his right eye smiles for a photo with his young grandson.
News / Fundraising /

Who is Hussain fundraises for Sightsavers at half-marathon

The charitable foundation is raising £35,000 for Sightsavers’ work in Pakistan through its Sprint for Sight campaign.

May 2022
A girl wearing a cloth face mask adjusts her glasses to read a vision chart.
News / Eye health /

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.

May 2022
An eye health worker shines a torch into a woman's eyes to check for eye issues. She's wearing a colourful pink headscarf.
News / Eye health /

Sightsavers publishes new eye health research in partnership with RSTMH

The research supplement highlights how non-governmental organisations such as Sightsavers can generate high-quality evidence through their programmes.

April 2022
A man stands in a fast-flowing river examining foliage for black flies.
News / Fighting disease /

Sightsavers partnership aims to research the impact of climate change on NTDs

Sightsavers and the Walker Institute will explore different climate change scenarios to predict areas that will be most affected by neglected tropical diseases in the future.

March 2022
Jeniffer prepares the crops outside her home.
News / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers and partners launch US$6 million inclusion and labour rights programme

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.

March 2022
An illustration from the Put Us in the Picture website, featuring a woman with blonde hair wearing glasses next t a colourful wheel of fortune.
News / Education /

Sightsavers Ireland’s education site wins Website of the Year award

The Put Us in the Picture website teaches schoolchildren in Ireland about inclusive education and disability in low income countries.

February 2022
The Sightsavers accessibility pack box: a white and yellow box with handle, featuring the words 'Accessibility standards and audit pack, produced by Sightsavers'.
News / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers wins Zero Project award for accessibility audit pack

Sightsavers won the innovation award for its accessibility standards and audit toolkit, which helps improve healthcare facilities for people with disabilities.

December 2021
A large group of people hold a banner that celebrates the launch of the first cross-border mass drug administration for trachoma.
News / Fighting disease /

First cross-border treatments for trachoma are distributed in Kenya and Uganda

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.

November 2021
A group of smiling people hold signs that say Equal UN Mali.
News / Disability and inclusion /

Mali passes new law to protect the rights of people with disabilities

The Prime Minister of Mali has signed the new social decree into law, which promises to improve the lives of people with disabilities and make it possible for people to claim their rights.

September 2021
two surgeons work on a patient.
News / Fighting disease /

Thousands of people in Africa get sight-saving surgery

In three years, Sightsavers’ Accelerate programme has supported governments in 12 countries to provide eye surgery to 37,000 people.

June 2021
A large group of women dance and clap while celebrating the elimination of trachoma in The Gambia.
News / Fighting disease /

Trachoma is eliminated in The Gambia

The Gambia has become the second country in sub-Saharan Africa to eliminate the potentially blinding disease, as confirmed by the World Health Organization.

April 2021
Caroline Harper, CEO of Sightsavers, holding a dose pole.
News / Fighting disease /

Dr Caroline Harper wins the first Hemingway Award

Sightsavers’ CEO was recognised for her work to help eliminate trachoma by transforming the way funding is secured.

November 2019
A woman has her eyes checked by an eye health worker in an outdoor screening camp in India.
News / Eye health /

Sightsavers named most cost-effective health charity

Charity evaluator ImpactMatters awarded Sightsavers a five-star rating for cost-effectiveness – the highest score available.

November 2019
Samson Lokele poses next to his image in the Science Museum exhibition.
News / Fighting disease /

Sightsavers’ pioneering work is showcased in new Science Museum exhibition

Medicine: The Wellcome Galleries is the world’s largest medical gallery and will be on display for at least 30 years.

November 2019
Sir Clive Jones.
News /

Sightsavers welcomes Clive Jones as new chair of trustees

Broadcasting veteran Clive will take the helm from current chair Martin Dinham, who is stepping down after four years in the role.

July 2019
Professor Christopher Whitty.
News / Eye health /

Sightsavers trustee appointed chief medical officer for England

Professor Christopher Whitty, who has been on Sightsavers’ board of trustees since 2017, will take up the post in October.

June 2019
Dominic Haslam sat at a desk talking into a microphone
News / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers director Dominic Haslam awarded an OBE

Dominic, who is Sightsavers’ Director of Policy and Programme Strategy, is recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for his services to people with disabilities.

June 2019
Old black and white photo showing a group of young men on a mountain slope.
News / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers marks 50th anniversary of Mount Kilimanjaro expedition

On 20 February 1969, Sightsavers supported men with visual impairments on an expedition to raise awareness about blindness.

February 2019
Blue Peter's Sight Savers appeal.
News / Fundraising /

60 years of Blue Peter: the show that gave Sightsavers its name

As Blue Peter celebrates its 60th birthday, we look back to the programme’s Sight Saver appeal in 1986, which raised money for our mobile eye units in Africa.

October 2018
Caroline Harper speaks at TED2018.
News / Fighting disease /

Trachoma talk from Sightsavers’ CEO named ‘TED of the Day’

Dr Caroline Harper's TED Talk, in which she laid out an ambitious plan to eliminate trachoma, has been chosen as the day’s top pick.

June 2018
An eye health worker uses a torch while checking a man's eyes for trachoma.
News / Fighting disease /

Trachoma is eliminated in Ghana

Ghana has become the first country in sub-Saharan Africa and the Commonwealth to eliminate trachoma, as validated by the World Health Organization.

June 2018
Professor Stephen Hawking at the Sightsavers celebration of a billion NTD treatments.
News / Fighting disease /

Stephen Hawking commends his father’s role in tackling NTDs

Professor Hawking spoke at Sightsavers’ event to mark the one billionth treatment for neglected tropical diseases: watch the full video of his speech here.

December 2017
Caroline Harper.
News / Eye health /

Sightsavers’ Caroline Harper named in New Year Honours

Dr Harper has been appointed a CBE in recognition of her services to people with visual impairments around the world.

December 2015
A photo of two hands. In one hand there are three tablets.
News / Fighting disease /

Scientists win Nobel prize for river blindness discovery

William C Campbell and Satoshi Omura discovered a group of compounds known as avermectins, used to treat and prevent river blindness.

October 2015
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