Reach 7,800+ adults and children through the miracle of restored sight with Seva Foundation and Focusing Philanthropy

As always, Focusing Philanthropy covers all overhead costs. 100% of every donation will go to the 2020 World Sight Day campaign.

THE NEED

Of the 36 million blind people worldwide, 90% of them live in the poorest areas of developing countries. Yet 80% of the world’s blind people could see again if they had access to adequate eye care services. To raise awareness about the number of people who cannot see but who could, the World Health Organization and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness created World Sight Day (WSD), an annual day of awareness that brings international attention to the issues of blindness and visual impairment.

2020 CAMPAIGN

Through our Ninth Annual World Sight Day campaign, Seva Foundation and Focusing Philanthropy will enable 7,800 people (including 700 children) who are blind because of cataract and trachoma trichiasis to see again, by funding eye operations in 15 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. These surgeries are provided free of charge and serve patients who cannot afford to pay. Not only can a person with renewed sight resume a productive life, but his or her caregiver can return to work or school. Thus, each surgery changes the lives of at least two people.

This year, we are once again expanding our efforts to address a growing pediatric blindness epidemic in areas of the world where increasing numbers of premature infants survive. The 2020 campaign will fund Year 2 of our Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) pilot initiative that will screen up to 1,000 infants–of which 50 will require and receive treatment and surgery to prevent them from developing permanent blindness–and ultimately serve as a model for hospitals worldwide.

Additionally, the campaign will support the procurement of essential equipment and continued specialized training of staff for treating ROP.

1:1 MATCH

In support of the Ninth Annual World Sight Day campaign, every $1 raised by Focusing Philanthropy will be matched with $1 raised by the Seva Foundation for a combined fundraising goal of $585,000. To qualify for the match, donations must be a minimum of $1,000 and directed to Focusing Philanthropy, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Donations are fully tax deductible.

All Focusing Philanthropy costs are covered by its founders and 100% of funds contributed will go to the 2020 campaign. A final impact report will be released in summer 2021.

In conjunction with World Sight Day, Focusing Philanthropy and Seva Foundation have implemented annual fundraising campaigns since 2012. Over the course of this partnership, more than $3.7 million in matching grants has been raised, resulting in nearly 60,000 surgeries performed! A successful campaign this year will bring the total amount of people with restored sight through our joint initiatives to over 67,000.