Visions Global Empowerment Expands Hearing Access in Ethiopia With Support From AllPeopleBeHappy
In Ethiopia, over 5 million Deaf and hard-of-hearing people face daily barriers to education, employment, healthcare, and social inclusion. These challenges are compounded by poverty, stigma, and a lack of communication tools or public services. With support from AllPeopleBeHappy, Visions Global Empowerment Ethiopia—an independent, locally led charity based in Hawassa—has been working to create opportunities and access for this underserved population since 2019.
Through its Visions Academy School for the Deaf and a wide range of community-based services, including Ethiopian Sign Language training, interpretation, tutoring, and livelihood development, Visions is building a more inclusive society, one where Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals can thrive. Hawassa, the fifth-largest city in Ethiopia, has become a hub for this work and a gathering place for Deaf individuals seeking connection and support.
One of the organization’s most urgent priorities is expanding access to audiological care. Visions Ethiopia is currently the only provider of free hearing testing, hearing aids, and related services in the entire region, where just one audiometer is available to serve millions. Earlier this year, the team established a dedicated audiology clinic named in honor of longtime volunteer Dr. Catherine Clark of the National Technical Institute for the Deaf – Rochester Institute of Technology (NTID-RIT). This clinic marks a major step forward in addressing hearing loss in southern Ethiopia.
Looking ahead, Visions Ethiopia is focused on growing the clinic’s capacity and reach. Plans include training local staff and volunteers to provide year-round hearing services, expanding hearing aid distribution and support, launching mobile and infant hearing screenings, and developing new partnerships with local healthcare providers. The long-term goal is not just to provide individual hearing devices, but to build a sustainable, community-based model of care that raises awareness and creates systemic change.
Visions will continue to lay the foundation for a future where all Deaf and hard-of-hearing Ethiopians can access the services and opportunities they deserve.
Follow along for updates, and if you’d like to support the work of Visions Global Empowerment, you can donate here.
Update: April 13th, 2026
Visions Global Empowerment’s The Gift of Hearing: Delivering Vital Audiology Services in Southern Ethiopia project is making remarkable progress toward expanding access to hearing healthcare in some of the country’s most underserved communities. Now well into the service-delivery phase, the project has established critical audiology infrastructure at the Dr. Catherine Clark Center for Audiology in Hawassa and is rapidly approaching its annual goals. To date, the team has conducted 668 of its planned 700 hearing assessments and fitted 173 of its target 250 hearing aids, providing life-changing support to children and adults with hearing loss.
A major milestone has been the successful procurement of specialized diagnostic equipment and the training of local personnel to provide year-round services. Two audiology technicians and a professional interpreter are now delivering hearing screenings and diagnostic testing through the center, helping build sustainable local capacity where few hearing healthcare services previously existed. These investments are creating a foundation for long-term access to audiology care in the Sidama Region while ensuring that individuals can receive support closer to home.
The project’s reach has expanded significantly through partnerships with organizations such as Imagine1Day and Cheshire Ethiopia. By sharing transportation resources and logistical support, the team has been able to travel regularly to remote regions throughout Ethiopia, including Oromia, Sidama, South Ethiopia, and South Western Ethiopia. These outreach efforts have resulted in hundreds of additional screenings and hearing aid fittings, bringing services directly to communities that would otherwise have little or no access to specialized hearing care.
Despite challenges including inflation, limited healthcare infrastructure, staffing constraints, and regional instability, the project continues to exceed expectations. Volunteers and professional mentors have played a critical role in supporting service delivery, including audiologists, educators, interpreters, and medical professionals from both Ethiopia and the United States. Looking ahead, Visions Global Empowerment hopes to build on this momentum by expanding complementary services such as Ethiopian Sign Language instruction, educational support, and community programming for Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. Together, these efforts are helping create a more inclusive future while ensuring that more people have access to the hearing services they need to thrive.