The World Blind Union (WBU) and the International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment (ICEVI), have jointly issued the Global Declaration on Braille Literacy in Education.

Blind Citizens NZ along with many other organisations across the world fully support the Global Declaration, and the recently promoted Braille Literacy Survey.

In Aotearoa New Zealand, our mahi has involved Blind Citizens NZ’s Braille Special Interest Network working with Blind Low Vision NZ to promote the importance of Braille.

Led by Chantelle Griffiths Coordinator of our Braille Special Interest Network, this has involved online hui where thought-provoking questions, suggestions and discussions with James Carrick from BLVNZ’s Braille Project Lead have taken place. These efforts, link well to Blind Citizens NZ’s commitment to advancing Braille literacy, and our registered support to the global campaign.

More recently, at the conclusion of its 35th session in August 2026, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) issued a statement in support of the Global Declaration. It described the Declaration as “a significant initiative of organizations of persons with disabilities and civil society organizations to strengthen implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.”

This recognition is an important milestone for the Global Braille Literacy Campaign which anyone can support. That is to say, you do not need to be a Braille user to support this global initiative. The Declaration remains open for additional organisational and individual endorsements until the end of September 2026. We encourage our readers to add your support to this initiative.

To do this, please take the following  shortened URL link https://tinyurl.com/26cpk6oe or the full link
https://icevi.org/global-declaration-add-your-voice/#organizational-and-individual-endorsements

The Campaign is also undertaking a Global Braille Literacy Survey to build an international evidence base about how braille is produced, taught, learned, used and accessed, and the factors that enable or create barriers to braille literacy.

The survey is open to:

• adults aged 18 years and over who are blind, deafblind, low vision or vision-impaired;
• parents and guardians of children who are blind, deafblind, low vision or vision-impaired;
• teachers and other professionals involved in Braille education; and
• Braille transcribers.

Blind Citizens NZ encourages anyone meeting any of the above-mentioned survey criteria to participate, and to also share this opportunity as widely as you can. The survey is available in a number of languages. You can find out more by taking the following link tiny.cc/braillesurvey

Every response helps strengthen the understanding of Braille literacy around the world and supports future advocacy, including here in Aotearoa New Zealand.

For questions, MS Word versions for offline distribution, or enquiries about additional language versions, please contact info@icevi.org or info@wbu.ngo.