Now that he is treated I am so happy, I cannot stop smiling. My son is one of the lucky children to have received treatment at such a young age. When he grows, he will go to school and he can achieve his dreams — feeling comfortable in how he looks. Read more
"I always felt sad and I really tried my best to get him help but I didn't know where to go. He has not been able to attend school — no one can understand his speech apart from me. When I heard that treatment was available and for free, I was happy beyond words. I am hopeful that now he will be able to attend school and make friends." Read more
"I was also born with cleft lip, I had surgery when I was child. I was always worried that one of my children would be born with one too. When my son was born I was scared — even though I had experienced it myself. My husband was also scared because our community is scared and ashamed of such things. My son is a happy child now and not aware of the communities discrimination, but I know the experience — and when I heard of this opportunity I was so happy, beyond words.” Read more
It’s amazing to see that what I dreamed of for our child has come true. My daughter is beautiful and she was always beautiful. It made me really happy when I saw her face for the first time after the surgery. And I know when she grows up and hears the story of how she got treatment, she will feel lucky that she was to receive it at this young age. She will feel happier than me. Thank you for all you did for our daughter and our family. Read more
We met 5 year old Nagalem during our 2020 Complex Surgical Programme. She was unable to receive treatment in Ethiopia, but over the course of 18 months we were able to arrange specialist treatment overseas as a result of international collaboration Read more
Three year old Tamirat's mother and father brought him to Bahir Dar for cleft palate surgery in February 2021 Read more
10 Year old Kitessa received treatment at the end of December for his cleft lip Read more
We met Meserat during our 2020 Complex Surgical Programme, she was born with a nasal deformity and had experienced bullying because she looked different to her peers. Meserat received complex facial reconstructive surgery and we also saw her grow in confidence throughout her operation and recovery journey Read more
When Fikert's son Fayisa was born with a cleft lip she was extremely worried, her first son had passed away just a few months after he was born, so when Fayisa was born with a cleft lip Fikirt told us that she did not consider he would survive. Luckily Fayisa received surgery for his cleft lip in October 2020. Read more
Read about how Ferhan was supported with our Covid Response Programme whilst he waited for surgery for his cleft palate Read more
Sariya travelled to Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa with her 10 month old daughter Indiya, after she had been identified as needing treatment for her cleft lip and palate by Project Harar. Read more
At the beginning of October 2020, we were able to re-launch the mobilisation aspect of our cleft programme after an eight month pause due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Read Chala and Moibon's story Read more