Annual Review 2024 Executive Summary

ATscale

Annual Review 2024 Executive Summary

Unlocking Potential Amplifying Impact

Annual review contributors

This annual review was produced by the ATscale Secretariat team, under the guidance of Pascal Bijleveld, ATscale Chief Executive Officer and the leadership of Ceridwen Johnson, Aurelie Rigaud and Barbara Goedde. The report benefited from valuable contributions from ATscale Secretariat colleagues: Julia Amadio, Mujib Ahmad, Ranjavati Banerji, Henri Bonnin, Emma Curati-Alasonatti, Anil Kashyap, Satish Mishra, Karen Maria Reyes Castro, Leah Cherono Sakura, Eduardo Sanchez Mera, Tabitha Wanjiru Icuga Topp, Kinley Wangmo, Elaine Zameck and Giorgia Zara.

Information and data management support by Hashmat Hanifi, UNOPS National Programme Support Specialist, editing and proofreading by Prime Production, graphic design by Blossom.

Disclaimer

The results presented in this publication were reported by ATscale-supported partners and consolidated and quality-assured by the ATscale Secretariat. The views expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the United Nations, its donor agencies, or UN Member States. Furthermore, the boundaries, names, and designations used in the map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations, ATscale, or partner countries.

Front cover © The Fred Hollows Foundation

Acknowledgements

This report highlights the remarkable achievements made possible through the collective efforts of numerous stakeholders dedicated to improving access to assistive technology worldwide.

ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology, thanks its donors – the United States Agency for International Development, the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the European Commission, and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade – for their unwavering commitment and generous financial contributions, instrumental for enabling the Partnership to actively pursue its goals. Appreciation is also extended to the ATscale Board members for their dedication, strategic guidance, leadership and advocacy efforts throughout the year – particularly Jon Lomøy, the Board chair and the Board members that have been accompanying ATscale’s journey from the very beginning, such as International Disability Alliance (IDA), UNICEF and WHO.

ATscale also acknowledges the invaluable role of its implementing partners, whose dedication and expertise on the ground are essential for translating strategy into impactful results, and ensuring that assistive technology reaches those who need it most.

National governments in supported countries also play an essential role in ATscale’s mission. Their dedication to creating enabling environments and increasing the prioritization of assistive technology is key to the lasting impact of collaborative work. Equal gratitude goes to users of assistive technology and organizations of persons with disabilities, whose lived experiences, insights, and advocacy efforts are a driving force behind this work. Their participation at every level ensures that ATscale’s interventions are relevant, appropriate, and responsive to the needs of users of assistive technology.

As ATscale’s host organization, the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) plays a critical role in facilitating operations, ensuring efficient and effective delivery of initiatives. ATscale extends its sincere appreciation to UNOPS for enabling the Partnership to focus on its core mission of expanding access to assistive technology.

To all stakeholders who contributed their time, expertise, and energy: thank you and we look forward to continued collaboration in the shared mission of unlocking the potential of assistive technology, and ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to live a fulfilling life.

Donors

Board members

Implementing partners

Executive Summary

This annual report charts the progress of ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology, in its mission to transform lives through assistive technology. Since its inception, ATscale has been working towards the ambitious goal that by 2030, an additional 500 million people in low- and middle-income countries have access to life-changing assistive technology.

ATscale’s work is guided by three strategic pillars:

STRATEGIC PILLAR 1 SUPPORTING COUNTRY PLANS

ATscale is working with over 20 countries to strengthen assistive technology policies, systems, services and financing.

STRATEGIC PILLAR 2 STRENGTHENING GLOBAL ENABLERS

ATscale supports the development of global tools and resources – such as knowledge, guidance and product information – to support countries to make progress. This includes fostering healthy markets that deliver reliable supplies of quality, affordable products.

STRATEGIC PILLAR 3 ADVOCATING FOR CHANGE

ATscale catalyses political will, builds public awareness and raises overall resources for assistive technology.

Key achievements in 2024

Supporting country plans

ATscale-supported programmes reached over 1,5M people (51 per cent women and girls) with assistive technology, including about 250,000 people who received an assistive product in countries such as Cambodia, Kenya, Rwanda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Tajikistan and Zambia - a population where women and girls constituted a full half of the users.

Significant progress was made in increasing the availability of assistive technology, with initiatives such as training health professionals in Kenya, establishing a wheelchair service provision programme in Lesotho, and supporting prosthetic and orthotic training in Cambodia.

Fostering governance and assistive technology frameworks: ATscale- supported countries have established national steering committees and strengthened national assistive products lists - an essential step towards increasing the availability of assistive products.

Expanding financial coverage for assistive technology: Notable progress was made in increasing financial coverage, particularly in Zimbabwe and Rwanda.

Strengthening the assistive technology workforce: Close to 9,000 individuals, half of whom are women, were trained across ATscale-supported countries, with an estimated indirect reach of up to 17.5 million people over time through enhanced capacity of front line workers.

Integration of assistive technology into humanitarian settings: with ATscale support, partners procured and distributed over 1,000 assistive products for hospitals in Gaza, and are working globally to establish four AT kits for rapid deployment in disaster situations.

Strengthening national health information systems: ATscale is supporting the integration of assistive technology data into existing health information management tools, such as the Kenya Health Information System.

Expanding ATscale impact through the preparatory work for 20 upcoming programmes to expand access to life- changing assistive technology in low- and middle-income countries

Strengthening global enablers

ATscale continued to support the development of critical global enablers, including:

Building sustainable assistive product markets: In collaboration with CHAI, ATscale supported the production of the first-ever assistive product market report, analysing markets for eyeglasses, hearing aids, prostheses, wheelchairs and digital technology. ATscale supported sustainable local production models like Motivation’s Made AT Kenya and strengthened regional distribution hubs in South-East Asia and West Africa through partnerships focused on manufacturing, management, training, needs analyses and strategic expansion.

Bringing assistive technology services to everyone, everywhere: service delivery approaches for hearing aids were developed by the World Health Organization with ATscale support.

Removing financial barriers to accessing assistive technology: ATscale is supporting the expansion of the WHO Assistive Technology Capacity Assessment to integrate an investment case methodology for national policy makers.

Leveraging the power of digital assistive technology: ATscale supported UNICEF to expand access to information and communication in four underrepresented languages through text-to-speech software.

Advocating for change

Together with 24 partners, ATscale launched the “Unlock the Everyday” campaign, the first global campaign intended to raise awareness of increasing access to assistive technology. The campaign reached millions around the world and was celebrated on the first-ever World Day for Assistive Technology.

A boy in a wheelchair studies at a desk in a classroom. This photograph was taken for UNICEF’s “It’s About Ability” campaign, promoting inclusive education.

© UNICEF-UN040610

Looking ahead

ATscale is entering a scale-up phase, guided by its 2024-2027 Strategy. The organization intends to support at least 35 countries to develop stronger national assistive technology ecosystems, ensuring that 50 million more people benefit from assistive products and services. This will involve expanding access to priority assistive products, strengthening service delivery models, training workforces, and improving financing mechanisms.

ATscale recognizes the crucial role of users of assistive technology in its work, and is committed to ensuring that users are represented at all levels and that their voices are heard. In 2024, ATscale made significant strides in engaging users, including the recruitment of three persons with lived experience of assistive technology use.

In 2024, ATscale’s work demonstrated the transformative power of assistive technology and the importance of collective action. The organization is well-positioned to continue its progress in the coming years, ensuring that assistive technology becomes an integral part of health, education, and social systems in low- and middle-income countries.

Shakira, a young girl, is being fitted with a hearing aid in Malawi.

© Deafkidz International

About ATscale

ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology, is a cross-sectoral global partnership with the mission to transform people’s lives through assistive technology. It catalyses action to ensure that, by 2030, an additional 500 million people in low- and middle-income countries get the life-changing assistive technology they need.

Since being launched as an idea at the first Global Disability Summit in July 2018 in London, it has built a solid foundation. The 2024-2027 Strategy represents the beginning of the scale-up phase, in which it is poised to expand its country and global footprint to deliver a wider and deeper impact over the next three years and beyond.

ATscale convenes partners globally and nationally, and engages users of assistive technology, to drive progress across three mutually reinforcing strategic pillars:

Supporting country plans, and their implementation, to strengthen assistive technology policies, systems, services and financing in over 35 countries across multiple product areas;

Strengthening global enablers: the global tools and resources, such as knowledge, guidance and product information, that countries need to make progress, such as healthy markets that deliver reliable supplies of quality, affordable products;

Advocating for change to catalyse political will, build public awareness and raise overall resources for assistive technology.

Assistive Technology (AT) is an umbrella term covering the systems and services related to the delivery of assistive products. Assistive products are any product, including devices, equipment, instruments and software, specially designed and produced or generally available, whose purpose is to maintain or improve an individual’s functioning and independence and to facilitate participation. Examples include wheelchairs, eyeglasses, hearing aids, prostheses and digital devices and software.

Khendo & Nirmala, 10, sit and play wearing prosthethes. Their legs were amputated after the earthquake which hit Nepal in 2015.

© L. Veuve/Handicap International

WORLD MAP OF ATSCALE SUPPORTED PROGRAMMES TO DATE AND PLANNED

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Image Description

The map presents the geographic distribution of ATscale supported programmes as of 31st December 2024 and planned.

There are 12 foundational countries, 8 scale-up and 2 humanitarian support countries.12 of the supported countries are lower-middle income countries, 7 are upper-middle income countries and 3 are low-income countries.

Current scale up support countries are Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Georgia, Kenya, Senegal, Tajikistan and Zambia. Rwanda is already a scale-up country (hearing) but preparing for additional scale-up (vision).

El Salvador, Indonesia and the United Republic of Tanzania received foundational support and are in preparatory phase for scale-up support.

Foundational countries are Bangladesh, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guatemala, Honduras, Lesotho, Mozambique, Nepal, Peru, Zimbabwe.

Ukraine and Palestine were supported by ATscale with humanitarian support. Palestine is in the preparatory phase for scale-up support.

In addition, there are other countries in preparatory phase for scale-up support: Nigeria, Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Colombia; and the Pacific Island Countries of Federated States of Micronesia, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Kiribati.

ATscale Highlights OVERVIEW OF IMPACT FROM INCEPTION TO 2024

People reached with assistive technology 2 1,543,465 (51% female)

Indirect reach 3 : 4,771,592

People reached with products 247,533 (50% female)

Indirect reach: 767,035

COUNTRY ENGAGEMENT

Supporting Country Plans and their implementation, to strengthen their assistive technology policies, systems, services and financing

Reached with assistive technology by type of intervention 4

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Image Description

The title of this infographic is “Reached with assistive technology by type of intervention.”

It presents a horizontal bar chart with the people reached by type of intervention as of 31st December 2024. Each bar is segmented to visually represent the proportion of male and female trainees within that category.

3,294,552 people (54% female) were reached with services - promotion.

1,437,371 people (51% female) were reached with services - screening.

247,533 people (50% female) were reached with products.

85,586 people (56% female) were reached with services - assessments and Other.

1,226 people (57% female) were reached with other type of intervention.

A footnote is added to this graph:

The sum of people reached across each intervention and/or functional domains controls for potential double counting of individuals who might have received several interventions and several functional domains.

Reached with assistive technology by functional domains 4 :

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Image Description

The title of this infographic is “Reached with assistive technology by functional domains.”

It illustrates a tree map chart showing the share of people reached with assistive technology for different functioning domains.

Vision, Mobility, hearing and cross-cutting domain.

Vision: 1,48M people reached (51% female).

Mobility : 55,666 people reached (47% female).

Cross-cutting : 1,176 people reached (57% female).

hearing : 5,029 people reached (49% female).

A footnote accompanies this graph: The sum of people reached across each intervention and/or functional domains controls for potential double counting of individuals who might have received several interventions and several functional domains.

People reached with products: 247,533 (50% female)

Indirect reach: 767,035 3

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Image Description

People reached with products:

247,533 people were reached with products (50% female). The indirect reach is estimated at 767,035 people. A foot note indicates that the estimated indirect reach with assistive technology reflects the additional individuals within the households of those directly benefiting from assistive technology. This is calculated using the average household size for each country.

An horizontal bar chart presents the people reached with products disaggregated by type of products. Each bar is segmented to visually represent the proportion of male and female trainees within that category.

226,062 people (55% female) received eyeglasses or contacts.

9,840 people (28% female) received prosthetics or orthotics.

7,687 people (27% female) received other mobility products.

2,059 people (48% female) received a wheelchair.

1,297 people received other types of vision related products.

337 people (50% female) received hearing aids.

Finally 251 not specified products were delivered to users of assistive technology.

As for Humanitarian Aid support, Over 5,600 assistive products were pre-positioned in a regional logistic hub.

People trained: 8,785 (50% female) Indirect reach per year: 17,570,000 5

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Image Description

An infographic showing information about the people trained. The number of people trained is 8,785 (50%female) which represents an indirect reach of 17,570,000 people. A footnote indicates that Indirect reach is extrapolated based on an estimated reach of individuals served by each trained person on the front-line over a one-year period using global averages.

The infographic is a donut pie chart showing the people trained by personnel title:

Teachers/education personnel are 2,566 (41% female), they represent 29% of the total trained.

Community health workers/volunteers are 2,452 (59% female), they represent 28% of the total trained.

Health personnel are 2,154 (42% female), they represent 25% of the total trained.

Other categories are 1,613 (57% female), they represent 18% of the total trained. A footnote attached to “other category” indicates: Organizations of persons with disabilities, government representatives, programme managers, etc.

2. ATscale counts people reached with assistive technology through service delivery (screening, clinical assessment, fitting, maintenance, among others) and/or product delivery. ↩︎

3. The estimated indirect reach with assistive technology reflects the additional individuals within the households of those directly benefiting from assistive technology. This is calculated using the average household size for each country. ↩︎

4. The sum of people reached across each intervention and/or functional domains controls for potential double counting of individuals who might have received several interventions and several functional domains. ↩︎

5. Indirect reach is extrapolated based on an estimated reach of individuals served by each trained person on the front-line over a one-year period using global averages. ↩︎

6. Organizations of persons with disabilities, government representatives, programme managers, etc.

Organizations strengthened

System strengthening

GLOBAL ENABLERS

Improving the availability of affordable, high-quality products and expanding access to up-to-date evidence and practical guidance for inclusive services

MARKET BUILDING

Local production and assembly of assistive products - Made AT Kenya

Strengthening regional distribution hubs - Cambodia, Togo

Assistive Products Market Report 2024

SERVICE DELIVERY

WHO’s 2024 Hearing aid service delivery approaches for low- and middle income country settings

Measuring the outcome of prosthetic services: LEAD and COMPASS

FINANCING

Case for Investing in Assistive Technology

DIGITAL AT

Research partnership on smartphone use as assistive technology

Development of text-to- speech (TTS) for under- represented languages

ADVOCATING FOR CHANGE

Raising public awareness, building political will, and mobilizing resources to advance global access to assistive technology

SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS

10,000+ followers across all social media platforms

300+ MILLION PEOPLE REACHED with media & social media combined

STRATEGIC ENGAGEMENT

21 USERS of assistive technology participated in events, supported by ATscale

UNLOCK THE EVERYDAY CAMPAIGN

160 MILLION people reached

46 PIECES of earned media coverage

WORLD DAY FOR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY

20+ COUNTRIES

2.3 MILLION reached on social media

ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology, is a cross-sector global partnership with a mission to transform people’s lives through assistive technology. It catalyses action to ensure that, by 2030, an additional 500 million people in low- and middle-income countries get the life-changing assistive technology they need.

For more information, visit atscalepartnership.org

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