The All WE See Is Possibility (AWSIP) Programme

Faculty of Special Needs and Rehabilitation – Project

Funder: Royal Dutch Visio

Funder

Royal Dutch Visio

Background

The All WE See Is Possibility (AWSIP) Programme was launched in 2016 as a cooperation between Kyambogo University (Faculty of Special Needs and Rehabilitation) Uganda and Royal Dutch Visio from the Netherlands-a centre of expertise for partially sighted and blind persons. The programme aims at the inclusion and development of the full potential of young people, aged between 11 and 30 years, with low vision and blindness. AWSIP programme is working with ten (10) secondary schools, twenty-two (22) primary schools, and three (3) universities in Uganda. Majority of the schools are mainstream and/or inclusive schools with visual impairment units and some special schools are a lot part of the programme. The programme started with 264 visually impaired students in secondary school 2016, and currently has reached over 2,000 students with visual impairment in 24 districts in Uganda.

Implementation Partners

AWSIP programme works with various institutions in Uganda namely; Primary and Secondary Schools (mainstream and/or inclusive, and Special), Parents and Caregivers, Community Leaders pf Persons with Visual Impairment, Government & Private Hospitals (eye health-care services), Makerere University Optometry Department, Ministry of Education and Sports, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Ugandan National Association of the Blind (UNAB), National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU), International and National nongovernmental organizations in the field of eye care.

Mission: Young persons with low vision and blindness, aged 11-30, develop their full potential and are fully included in society; at home, school and in communities.

Geographical Area of Operations in Uganda

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Our Theory of Change- The All We See Is Possibilities (AWSIP) Programme

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Achievements & Successes

Empowerment of Young People

20 teachers from 10 secondary schools were trained as Trainer of Trainers (ToTs) on empowerment of young persons with visual impairment.
22 Sports/ physical education teachers from 22 primary schools were trained on inclusive sports and resilience.
5 student representatives (1 from a university and 4 secondary schools) facilitated attending international disability day celebrations in December 2023.
29 parents of children with visual impairment from 24 districts trained in leadership and representation skills to advocate and represent their views at school and national levels.
4 Students (2 from Kyambogo and Gulu University, and 2 from 2 secondary schools) facilitated to attend and present a paper on leadership and representation at the 1^st ICEVI Africa Forum Conference in Nairobi, Kenya in October 2023.
15 stakeholders (3 primary head teachers and 12 parents of children with visual impairment) trained on project start-up and grants management.
3 students (1 from Gulu University and 2 from secondary schools) represented their peers at the AWSIP Steering Committee meetings held in 2023.
3 students with visual impairment participated and represented AWSIP at the National Symposium on Inclusive Education in September 2023.
20 school career masters and mistresses were trained on career guidance and opportunities for students with visual impairment.
35 Stakeholders (18 community-based local leaders and 17 faith-based leaders) were trained and sensitised about low vision and how to support and prevent low vision and blindness in their respective communities.
300 parents of children with visual impairment from 24 districts were trained and sensitised to income-generating activities for livelihood support to their children with visual impairment.

Strengthening Capacity of Service Providers

243 teachers trained in various themes of visual impairment namely; Braille mathematics, inclusive sports, screening, and assessment, equipping them with diverse skills.
21 low vision therapists (LVTs), Ophthalmic Clinical Officers (OCOs) and 2 CPD’s trained in refraction & paediatric eye assessment.
47 health workers at lower-level health centres from 24 districts were sensitized and trained on low vision, causes, prevention and management.
40 inspectors of schools trained on the inclusion of persons with visual impairment.
33 schools provided support supervision in teaching and learning of visually impaired students, inclusion, participation and building and strengthening support teams at the school and district levels.
In the 3 monitoring visits by the country coordinator and programme manager of Visio International visited 19 programme schools (6 secondary and 9 primary schools) and 9 eye care units in hospitals in the south, western and eastern regions of Uganda.
ASWIP programme staff and representatives of students with visual impairment participated in national disability advocacy events namely; white cane Day, international disability day, and the National Symposium on Inclusion.
5 visual impairment professionals e. Visio country coordinator, database officer, eye care advisor, 1 low vision therapist and 1 teacher from Uganda participated in the Visio International Week of 2023.
10 hospital administrators, Ophthalmic Clinical Officers (OCOs) and low vision therapists in the AWSIP programme implementation partnership received orientation in eye care from an Eye Care Advisor / Specialist from Makerere University, Uganda and the Viso Country Coordinator.
2 consultative meetings were held between AWSIP team and Mengo Hospital, Uganda and discussed appropriate methods of delivering low-vision devices to visually impaired learners in
170 newly appointed District Education Officers in charge of Special Needs Education were oriented on low vision and other special needs in conjunction with the Ministry of Education and Sports, Uganda.

Accessibility and Affordability of Assistive Devices

145 stakeholders received continuous sensitization and benchmarking at the AWSIP Hi-Tech Resource room at Kyambogo University, Uganda
20 headteachers of primary and secondary schools met and discussion on the placement of persons with visual impairment was held.
23 resource rooms established and equipped with advanced assistive devices in 23 AWSIPP programme primary schools.
42 teachers (20 secondary and 22 primary) were trained on information communication technologies (ICTs) use and maintenance of assistive devices for students with visual impairment.
34 inspectors of schools and education officers in charge of special needs sensitized about the needs and rights of students with low vision and the available assistive devices that they can use to access learning.
20 representatives (Government ministries, organizations of persons with disabilities, and hospitals) met and drafted the low vision guidelines that are supposed to be adopted by all the eye care professionals in Uganda.

Our Impact

Our Impact 1: Empowerment of Young People

Rise in the number of students with visual impairment elected in decision-making bodies like steering committee, school management committee, national students’ associations, and school clubs.
Increased involvement of students with visual impairment in extra-curricular and community activities.
Increased and active participation of students with visual impairment in National Paralympics and other co-curricular activities like sports, debate, leadership, dance and drama both within and outside the school environment.
Experiences and testimonials of empowerment among students with visual impairment featured in the popular film “The Light in My Eyes”. Link to be inserted

Our Impact 3: Accessibility and Affordability of Assistive Devices

Reduced number of learners who are blind and/or with low vision depend on sighted peers for accessing information and educational materials.
Increased numbers of learners with visual impairment who can independently read books/journals and library
Improved access to quality education services by persons with visual impairment through the use of assistive technologies in the resource rooms.
Increased number of teachers/ students with practical basic knowledge and skills in usage and maintenance of assistive devices for visually impaired persons.
More stakeholders appreciate the need to equip resource rooms with assistive devices and provide personal devices.
AWSIP approach of assistive technology in teaching and learning for visually impaired persons has been adopted as a good practice by Cyber School Technologies Solutions (CSTS) Uganda.
Success stories of students with visual impairment at Kyambogo University has inspired Cyber School Technologies Solutions (CSTS) Uganda to provide assistive devices to students with disabilities at the university.

Our Impact 2: Strengthening Capacity of Service Providers

Improvement in quality of service and handling of visually impaired persons during the screening and assessment processes.
Increased level of confidence reported by low vision therapists (LVTs) and Ophthalmic Clinical Officers (OCOs) in handling persons with visual impairment during refraction and paediatric assessment.
Increased numbers of students reported faster access to and improvement in the quality of services provided.
Eye health services are more accessible in the local health facilities.
Positive improvement in health-seeking behaviour of parents, caregivers and persons with visual impairment with increased attendance in eye care education due to nearness of eye care services.

Increased and heightened commitment and involvement of school administrations and line ministries at both district and national levels in eye care services provision.
Positive impact of trained stakeholders reported in their influence of budget allocations and attracted additional support from partners for the educational requirements of persons with visual impairment.
Increased and frequent monitoring visits by school inspectors have been reported by school authorities in areas of physical environment and safety to curriculum modifications and accommodations.
Improvement in standards of detection, screening, assessment, referral, and follow-up procedures in schools, thus contributing to a more effective framework for addressing the needs of visually impaired students.