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	Technologies for the Developing World

Home About Godisa Our Products Distributors Awards Board of Trustees Godisa at Work Contact Us		Godisa Technologies Trust was established to meet an urgent need. Hearing impairment is considered the most prevalent impairment in the world – almost 600 million, an estimated 10 % of people worldwide, have mild or worse hearing impairment. Developing countries have a hearing deficiency rate that is more than double that of developed countries. It is a well known documented fact that according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 278 million people in the world are affected by moderate bilateral hearing loss or worse.[1] The burden of disabling hearing impairment is estimated to be approximately twice as large in developing countries as in developed countries[2] however total world production is less than one tenth of the global need.[3] Once a person can not hear properly, social interaction, educational success and meaningful employment become difficult if not impossible.
	In 1992 the SolarAid Workshop (under the international Camphill movement) was established in the village of Otse, Botswana. In collaboration with the Botswana Technology Centre, the workshop developed an original and innovative product: the SolarAid, a hearing aid for use in developing countries that is powered by the free energy of the sun. Building on this initial success, the workshop then developed a behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aid and accompanying solar-powered battery charger. To facilitate continued growth, in May 2002 the workshop registered as Godisa Technologies Trust, a nonprofit enterprise with an independent Board of Directors. In Setswana, Godisa means "doing something that is helping others to grow". Godisa meets this urgent human need with products that are: Lower priced – at least 75% less expensive than comparable products allowing bulk purchase for donation purposes by government, deaf schools, hearing INGOs, deaf groups and caring individuals; as well as subsidized direct sales to audiologists and hearing impaired people living in developing countries; High quality – all of Godisa’s products meet applicable World Health Organization guidelines and use robust and proven components that last for many years; Technically advanced – internationally award-winning design, rapid and highly effective battery charging with the Solar Aid, and modern digital BTE hearing aids; Environmentally sound – solar powered (clean energy) battery recharging that reduces the harmful environmental impacts of battery disposal; and Designed for the developing world – an African organization that understands the challenges faced by hearing impaired people and organizations in developing countries. [1] WHO and WWHearing. Worldwide hearing care for developing countries, online project description, http://www.who.int/pbd/deafness/activitites/WWHearing/en/index.html, October 2006, p 1. [2] WHO. Guidelines for Hearing Aids and Services for Developing Countries, Second Ed., Sept 2004, p 10. [3] WHO. Guidelines for Hearing Aids and Services for Developing Countries, Second Ed., Sept 2004, p 10.