As we look back on 2024, we want to share some of our highlights!
To mark the 12 Days of Christmas, we’re delighted to bring you 12 inspiring stories from the year, showcasing the amazing things we’ve been able to achieve alongside our partners and supporters.
In January, we celebrated our sight-saving Light Up Lives project in Zimbabwe reaching the halfway mark! In 2021, CBM supporters donated an amazing £1.2 million, with every eligible pound then matched by the UK government through the UK Aid Match scheme. Across three years, Light Up Lives is enabling over 44,000 people with eye health problems to access good quality treatment and support.
We met with Brian, Aquila, and Patricia, who told us their stories: Click here to read more.
Together with Re:Define Communications, a media company in Nairobi, we produced our first ever unscripted film this year. We wanted to hear from people with disabilities in Kenya about how the climate crisis is affecting them, and created a film which puts their voices and stories at the centre.
“Life has really changed. It is not like things were a long time ago. A while back you could walk along the shores and easily find fish but now we have to go further into the lake.” – Lokopu, Fisherman
In May we were excited to launch our updated website! Our refreshed logo and website are easier to use and more accessible, but our commitment to breaking the cycle of poverty and disability for millions of people hasn’t changed. We love telling the stories of people our projects have reached – take a look here.
In June, longstanding CBM UK volunteer Gill Godber was named Volunteer of the Year at the Chartered Institute of Fundraising East Anglia Awards! This recognition highlights Gill’s exceptional dedication to CBM’s work over the last 16 years. Gill has been actively involved in various community events across Cambridge and beyond, including fun runs, tea parties, and musical events, to help raise funds for people with disabilities living in some of the world’s poorest places.
In September, we caught up with CBM Global’s Inclusive Eye Health Advisor, Poonam Shah. She told us more about her role and how she came to work in the world of global eye health. Poonam also filmed a series of short videos, explaining common eye conditions which are available to watch on our YouTube channel.
In August we marked the end of our sight-saving See the Way Rwanda project!
Five years ago, our amazing supporters generously donated £845,000 to our UK Aid Match See the Way appeal, dedicated to providing vital eye health services in rural Rwanda. This was then matched by the UK government, raising over £1.8 million in total.
We were pleased to report that, together with our partners, Kabgayi Eye Unit (Catholic Diocese of Kabgayi), we delivered eye health services to 35,608 people, providing treatment and protecting their vision. 1,994 people received cataract surgeries, restoring their sight and renewing their lives.
We were delighted that paralympic wheelchair racer, disability activist and CBM UK Ambassador, Anne Wafula Strike added her voice to our Every Girl, Everywhere campaign to ensure that every girl, everywhere has the opportunity to go to school.
Growing up with a disability in Kenya, Anne knows firsthand the discrimination and barriers that girls with disabilities face at school. Anne shared her own story and explains why our Every Girl, Everywhere campaign matters to her in our exclusive film which you can watch here: Click here to watch the film.
In September, we welcomed four new members to CBM UK’s Board of Trustees, of whom three are from the Global South.
Fingani M’Hone, Jim Ackers, Ifunfun Akerejola and Amjad Ali bring a wealth of experience to our Board. We were excited to be able to interview them when they visited our office in Cambridge!
In October, Cellist Joseph Reynolds and Pianist James Williams performed two fundraising concerts in central Cambridge, playing pieces by blind composers. James said: “Supporting CBM UK’s work of disability inclusion around the world is particularly important to me. This is not only because it is a tangible way to put Jesus’ command to “love your neighbour as yourself” into practice, but also because I have been learning about visual impairment in recent years through the joys and challenges of parenting someone who is blind — and very musical!”
As an accredited observer CBM UK attended COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Alongside our partners and others from the Disability Movement, we were calling for people with disabilities to have a seat at the United Nations climate negotiating table. We were delighted to take this opportunity to amplify the message that disability inclusive climate justice will enable whole communities to grow in resilience.
In November, our CEO Kirsty Smith was appointed Chair of the Board of Trustees for Bond, the UK network for organisations working in international development.
After her appointment Kirsty said: “I am delighted. I know just how effectively Bond galvanises members to address structural injustice and seek sustainable change. As a sector, we are facing unprecedented challenges, but also opportunities to think and behave differently. Bond’s role in the years to come will be more important than ever and I am honoured to be able to play my part as I join the Board.”
On Giving Tuesday (3rd December) we launched our Big Give Christmas Challenge, to help give the miracle gift of sight. Thanks to your generous support, we reached our biggest ever target of £100,000!
These donations will help provide sight-restoring and life-transforming surgery, train local doctors, surgeons and health workers, and will fund eyecare outreach camps.
