Download Activity report 2009/2010 (PDF)
Tigist Tibebu, ophthalomologist in training in Jimma, Ethipopia, examines a patient.
20 years of commitment
From the desire to help the less advantaged...
In 1988 a group of dedicated people met in Vienna to mobilize help for blind and otherwise disabled people in developing countries, following the ideals of Ernst Jakob Christoffel. Among the first projects of the young Austrian organisation were eye care units and rehabilitation programmes in Ethiopia and Kenya. In 1996 the Austrian Government started to collaborate with LIGHT FOR THE WORLD supporting a training programme for ophthalmologic staff in Kikuyu, Kenya, as part of Austrian Development Cooperation.
LIGHT FOR THE WORLD in Belgium was founded in 1997 under the name of Christian Blind Mission Belgium. One of the first programmes supported was CCBRT – an orthopaedic and eye care hospital and rehabilitation programme in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
In 1999 the initiative “VISION 2020 – The Right To Sight” was launched in cooperation with the World Health Organisation (WHO). LIGHT FOR THE WORLD has been an active member in this global action plan to eliminate preventable blindness by the year 2020 since the beginning.
As part of the implementation of a national blindness prevention programme in Ethiopia in 2000 LIGHT FOR THE WORLD established a much needed eye care department in Jijiga, Somali Region. Since 2003 LIGHT FOR THE WORLD is involved in developing the eye care department of the Kabgayi hospital in Rwanda. In 2006 the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was adopted. LIGHT FOR THE WORLD has advocated successfully to include International Development Cooperation in the UN-Convention.
In 2007 LIGHT FOR THE WORLD in the Czech Republic was founded in Prague and currently supports programmes in Ethiopia.
...to an international confederation.
In 2008 a formal agreement of confederation was signed by LIGHT FOR THE WORLD in Austria, Belgium and Czech Republic in order to strengthen the collaboration in programme countries and to create synergies in raising awareness for the situations of persons with disabilities in developing countries.
In 2009 the confederation established a Unit of Programme Support and International Advocacy in order to effectively advocate for the human rights of persons with disability on European and international level, to optimize the use of resources and to coordinate international experts.
Today LIGHT FOR THE WORLD is one of the leading European NGOs dedicated to the restoration of eyesight, prevention of blindness, rehabilitation of persons with disabilities and promotion of their human rights. Today we support 139 programmes in 20 countries.