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The Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) opened a call for submissions in June 2022. The call was for comments and suggested amendments to the ‘Draft Guidelines on Deinstitutionalization, including in emergencies’. 

On the 17th of June IF attended the launch event of the WHO World Mental Health Report: Transforming Mental Health for All.  Mental health is a vital aspect of wellbeing for everyone but it is topic which is faces stigma and discrimination, lack of investment and prioritisation by health systems. This is particularly true for persons with disabilities, a problem which youth with Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus have been raising awareness of through the activities of IF’s International Youth Group. 

The IF members training “From local to global - how to influence international actions through national advocacy” taking place on May 6 2022 provided an overview of key concepts and processes of international organisations.

IF Annual Report 2021 highlights all of IF activities and achievements of the past year. The year 2021 was an active one with many activities and challenges. Some of the activities were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, IF organised its activities in a digital format. These activities such as an escape room meeting, training opportunities, international awareness days, and the IF conference for persons with SBH on multidisciplinary care were well-received. Here, in this annual report 2021, the actions achieved for human rights, primary prevention, optimising management and care, raising awareness, as well as international solidarity are highlighted.

On May 24th 2022, the International Federation for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus (IF) together with GAPSBiF and G4 Alliance organised the WHA75 side event “Folic Acid Fortification to Prevent Spina Bifida” in Geneva, Switzerland.

The International Federation for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus (IF) together with partners from international organisations, medical and academic institutes are leading a campaign for a global action on preventable birth defects. Food fortification with folic acid is urgently needed to achieve the objectives of the 2010 World Health Assembly Resolution on Birth Defects and achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs).