Sightsavers India’s Eight–State Inclusive Education Programme Bags the Zero Award 2024

Sightsavers India won the Zero Project Award 2024 for its Eight–State Inclusive Education Programme’s concerted effort for using accessible Information and Communication Technology (ICT) devices. The initiative stood out among 523 nominations from 97 countries, earning recognition from an international peer-review board for its innovation, impact, and scalability.

The Zero Project 2024 annual research cycle was dedicated to the Inclusive Education and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) theme.

Sightsavers India’s Inclusive Education Programme aims to promote a positive and enabling environment in schools, families, and communities to support the holistic education of children with visual impairment. Enablement is facilitated by the availability of assistive devices and accessible educational material, provision of compensatory skills training, infrastructure accessibility, and building education management and leadership.

We aim to ensure that children who are visually impaired are included in mainstream education.

RN Mohanty, CEO of Sightsavers India, said, “It is gratifying to know that our Inclusive Education Programme is scalable, innovative, and sustainable. At Sightsavers India, we firmly believe that ICT plays a transformative role in the lives of students with visual impairment by promoting inclusion, improving access to information, and enhancing communication and independence. And this win reaffirms our beliefs. Congratulations to all fellow Awardees for their well-deserved recognition.”

Founded by the Austrian non-profit Essl Foundation in 2008, the Zero Project is a global and research-driven initiative to support the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

The Zero Project Call for Nomination 2024 was based on a research-driven approach to identify, curate, and share inclusive solutions, as intended and encouraged by Article 32 of the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

About Sightsavers India

Sightsavers India is a development organisation working with partners to reduce avoidable blindness and promote equal opportunity for people with disabilities.

Sightsavers India is collaborating with various departments of the respective state governments to scale up operations for Social Inclusion, Eye Health and Inclusive Education – three core areas of work.

We work in a sustainable way to promote lasting change by strengthening existing health systems, seeking to advocate with and influence governments, and by demonstrating best practices.

About the Zero Project

The Zero Project’s mission is working for a world with zero barriers. Worldwide, the Zero Project finds and shares solutions that improve the daily lives and legal rights of all persons with disabilities, as intended and encouraged by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.