Partnerships

Our Work

Together, we are stronger

Collaboration is at the heart of everything we do. Our impact simply wouldn’t be possible without our partners.

We partner with organisations that bring strengths that complement our own so that together, we can make a bigger and more lasting difference for more people. Our partnerships are built around shared values and goals that guide how we work together.

Get in touch

If you are an international organisation interested in exploring collaboration with Light for the World, you can contact us here: partnerships@light-for-the-world.org.

If you are an organisation based in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, South Sudan, or Uganda, please contact the Light for the World Country Office nearest you. The contact details are on the Focus Countries page.

“Light for the World is one of the best partners I have known in all my years of service. They do not come with a project and say “do this”. Rather, they ask us what our priorities are and how they can support us!”

Dr Olivia Ouedraogo, Director of Non-Communicable Diseases, Ministry of Health, Burkina Faso

We are committed to strengthening local structures and capacity, fostering local ownership and focusing on the sustainability of our interventions.

Partnerships are crucial to achieving lasting systems change. We believe in putting the people and communities we work for at the centre of our work and co-creating solutions with them. Our partnerships give a greater voice to marginalised communities.

“I have no doubt that the partnership between Light for the World and UNICEF will continue to be strong. A partnership like this, that is based on mutual trust and genuine commitment, has a solid ground for reaching tangible results for children and adults with disabilities.”

Edina Kozma, UNICEF

We engage with organisations of people with disabilities (OPDs), NGOs, government authorities, public institutions, international organisations, civil society and the private sector. We share data, lessons, learnings, tools, and experiences from and among our partners and programmes and collaborate with others to add to the global body of knowledge in our mandate areas. We openly report to our donors and supporters.

“Light for the World are amazing partners for RED NOSES International. By collaborating, we can explore the potential of co-creation to its fullest.”

Chiara Manavella, Emergency Smile manager at RED NOSES International

Luis Faquira, the Sofala district representative of FAMOD stands in flooded water in the aftermath of Cyclone Idai.

FAMOD – Mozambican Federation of Organisations of Persons with Disabilities – is one of Light for the World’s key partners in Mozambique. We work closely together to promote disability rights and increase the capacity and resources of local OPDs. © Mango Sound / Light for the World.

Several people, including Light for the World staff stand in front of a Light for the World banner smiling to celebrate the launch of We Can Work, one of the good news stories of 2023.

Light for the World and the Mastercard Foundation have partnered to enable young people with disabilities to access dignified and fulfilling work by 2030 through the “We Can Work” programme. We will work closely with the African Disability Forum, and national OPDs in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal.

Abel Batira is 10 years old. He lives with his seven older siblings and parents in southern Ethiopia. Abel was diagnosed with vision loss due to Vitamin A deficiency and malnutrition.

Partnership is at the core of 10-year programme, “1,2,3 I can see!”, which works to sustainably improve child eye health services across Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Mozambique, and Uganda. We work with Ministries, health authorities, private companies, NGOs, schools, eye health staff, teachers, nurses and midwives. © Genaye Eshetu / Light for the World.

Sign language development process in Juba, South Sudan culminating in a New South Sudan Sign Language Dictionary with about 800 signs.

Together with the South Sudan Association of the Deaf, the Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare and many other partners, we created a national sign language dictionary in South Sudan. The dictionary is used to train sign language interpreters, teachers, and social workers.

Naomi Mwanzia is an entrepreneur with a disability and project participant of the Global Labour Programme in Kenya.

Light for the World is a proud partner of Inclusive Futures, creating decent and sustainable work opportunities for people with disabilities. Along with Sightsavers and UKAid, United Disabled Persons of Kenya and our other partners, we link micro-entrepreneurs with disabilities to businesses in Kenya. © Christine Ogutu / Light for the World.

We work in a close partnership with RED NOSES International, who provide psychosocial support to our humanitarian action programmes, most recently to our InPower project in Mozambique.

We work closely with RED NOSES International, who provide psychosocial support to our humanitarian action programmes, most recently to InPower in Mozambique. By combining our expertise, we achieve higher quality programmes and greater impact. © Craig Russel.

Engagement with the disability movement

At Light for the World, we are committed to supporting the disability movement’s motto, “Nothing about us without us”.

Organisations of people with disabilities (OPDs) are crucial to all human rights and community development topics.

OPDs are led by people with disabilities and their families. They amplify voices that are too often unheard and fight for disability inclusion. The active participation of OPDs in policy and programme development and politics shapes our societies and contributes to removing social, physical, communication, legal, and institutional barriers.

Light for the World values our OPD partnerships. OPDs inform our programmes, engage in policy work, provide capacity-development support to their members, and connect influential stakeholders.

We work with major OPDs across our focus countries:

Federation of Ethiopian Associations of Persons with Disabilities (FEAPD)
Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations (GFD)
Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD)
Mozambican Association of People with Disabilities (FAMOD)
National Union of Burkina Faso Association for Blind and Visual Impairments (UNABPAM)
National Union of Disabilities’ Organisations of Rwanda (NUDOR)
National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU)
Senegalese Federation of Associations of People with Disabilities (FSAPH)
South Sudan Union of Persons with Disabilities (SSUPD)
United Disabled Persons of Kenya (UDPK)

We also work closely with OPDs at the international and regional levels through the International Disability Alliance (IDA), the African Disability Forum (ADF), and the European Disability Forum (EDF).

“Youth with disabilities must be involved in advocacy for inclusive policies and programmes because they form a big percentage of the population, and they are the leaders of tomorrow’s disability movement.”

Robert Ssewagudde, Disability Inclusion Facilitator and Youth on the Board of NUDIPU (National Union for Disabled Persons of Uganda)

Want to learn more about our Light for the World’s approach to partnerships with OPDs? See our policy here.