Institutional Development Program

New Announcements

2012 Senior Management Institute (SMI)

The Institutional Development Program of the World Blind Union is pleased to announce the 2012 Senior Management Institute (SMI), an organizational management course on disability and social development.Applications are due April 30, 2012. Click here for details and application information.

5th Africa Forum

The 5th Africa Forum, the largest-ever gathering in the blindness field, drew almost 400 delegates from 43 countries. A number of significant milestones for African people who are visually impaired were announced or launched at this breakthrough event. Learn more.

About the Institutional Development Program

Changing what it means to be blind and/or visually impaired in Africa.

The Institutional Development Program (IDP) works to expand the capacity of organizations of and for the blind in Africa to advocate for opportunities for improved policies and equal participation for people who are blind and visually impaired. For individuals, the IDP builds personal confidence and enables people who are blind to seek a life of independence, productivity, and self-determination. For organizations, the IDP strengthens the operational capacity of agencies providing and/or advocating for services to people who are blind or partially sighted through training, technical support, consultancy, and mentoring to partner organizations.

The Need for the IDP

In Africa, more than 20 million people who are blind and partially sighted are in need of services. Organizations of people who are blind are developed as entities to advocate for opportunities for citizenship and equal participation for people who are blind and partially sighted. Every member country of the African Union has an organization of people who are blind in need of capacity building and service models. Women, girls, and children and youth with visual disabilities are among the most underprivileged people in Africa. 

IDP’s Values

The philosophy of the IDP is grounded in a belief in the empowerment of the individual. The program works to empower people who are blind and partially sighted to participate fully in their communities by strengthening the capacity of organizations of and for the blind.

We do this by:

• Developing leadership skills at national and community levels
• Building democratic systems that are operated and managed transparently by participating organizations
• Strengthening the capacity of partner organizations to provide a range of services for blind people
• Facilitating access to services
• Building individual and group capacity to advocate for their rights as members of society in general and their home community in particular

Development and Structure of the IDP

The IDP was founded in 1991 by Sight Savers International and the Hilton/Perkins Program to support the work of the World Blind Union (WBU) and the African Union of the Blind (AFUB). The IDP is managed by an international team led by Perkins International, supported by a senior manager from Sight Savers International, and a team of consultants and trainers, all of whom are Africans. The IDP is led by and recruits trainers who are blind and partially sighted.  

Download our IDP Brochure as a PDF document.