IAPB announces the winners of the World Sight Day 2024 Photo Competition. 

The judges have chosen ‘We Love Our Eyes!’ by Abdullah Almajed, for King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital, as this year’s winning professional Photo of the Year and ‘Post Op visual test’, by Namkhen Lama, for Tilganga, as the winning amateur Photo of the Year.

“The quality, creativity and skillset – all was amazingly beautiful…Every picture had a story behind it and serves as a powerful reminder to prioritise eye health, particularly for children – the future generations,” said Fatima Zehar, LRBT, Programme Manager, Inclusive Eye Health Programme and World Sight Day Photo Competition Judge.

Michelle Sylvanowicz, Global Advocacy Director, Ophthalmology for Bayer, echoed the excitement, saying, “At Bayer, we are always impressed with each year’s submissions; the competition grows stronger each year.”

Winners were selected from over 600 images submitted from dozens of countries. Courtenay Holden, Head of Communications and Campaigns for IAPB, said, “Each year, we are continually inspired by the hundreds of beautiful submissions that capture the impact of sight-loss and the importance of ensuring everyone, everywhere has access to the eye care they need. These photos truly celebrate World Sight Day and the spirit of ‘Love Your Eyes,’ reflecting our shared commitment to eye care for all.”

Since its inception in 2015, the World Sight Day Photo Competition has helped tell the story of eye care; the social and economic impact of having accessible, available and affordable eye care and the flip side. 

“We are continually thrilled that so many talented photographers are keen to be part of the competition. We sincerely thank everyone who entered and congratulations to our incredible winners,” added Holden.

The judging panel consisted of Busisiwe Mzyece, Zimbabwe, Head of Programmes, Council for the Blind, Fatima Zehra, Programme Manager, Inclusive Eye Health Programme, LRBT, Lowri Moore, Author, Ambassador, Activist & IAPB Campaigner of the Year, Emily McCormick, Editor, Optometry Today, and Michelle Sylvanowicz, Global Advocacy Director, Ophthalmology for Bayer.

When asked to consider the importance of imagery that displays and celebrates the impact of eye care, Judge, Busisiwe Mzyece, replied, ‘These images are a powerful reminder that every picture tells a story – and every story has the power to change the world.” 

The IAPB World Sight Day Photo Competition is made possible with support from Bayer. The competition is part of the #LoveYourEyes, World Sight Day campaign.  

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About IAPB

IAPB is the overarching alliance for the global eye care sector with almost 250 members worldwide drawn from NGOs and civil society, corporate organisations, professional bodies and research and eye care institutions. You can learn more about IAPB at www.iapb.org.

About World Sight Day 

World Sight Day is coordinated by IAPB and is an annual day of awareness, held on the second Thursday of October. It is an opportunity to focus the world’s attention on eye care. World Sight Day 2024 was held on Thursday 10 October 2024.  The IAPB World Sight Day Photo Competition is the largest, most prestigious eye health photo competition. Since 2015 the competition has attracted thousands of entries from around the world.

World Sight Day is supported by IAPB Love Your Eyes Global Partners, including Abbvie, Amgen, Bayer, CBM, CooperVision, Hoya, Johnson & Johnson Vision, National Vision, Roche, Safilo, Seva Foundation, and Sightsavers.

About the Love Your Eyes Campaign

The Love Your Eyes campaign was launched as part of World Sight Day 2021, it is a year-round campaign to raise the profile of accessible, available and affordable eye health for all by 2030. Since the campaign launched, Love Your Eyes has gained significant global momentum. Over the last three years, the Love Your Eyes campaign has millions of individuals who pledged to #LoveYour Eyes, and garnered over 56,000 pieces of media, leading to almost one billion media impressions and nearly US$200 million in Advertising Value.

About Bayer

Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the Life Science fields of health care and agriculture. Its products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life, aligned with Bayer’s mission: Health for all, Hunger for none. This mission fuels us at Bayer every day as we strive to give everyone a chance for a better life by developing groundbreaking solutions that help put food on our tables and offer innovations in self-care and medicine so people can live better lives. Bayer is committed to creating value through innovation, growth, and high-earning power while upholding the principles of sustainable development and its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen.