What’s New at Retina South Africa

As we head into the winter season, we’re proud to share the latest edition of our Out of Sight newsletter — a reflection of the progress, innovation, and community that continues to drive Retina South Africa forward.

This month’s edition brings together inspiring stories, important updates, and practical insights for individuals, families, and professionals connected to inherited retinal conditions.

Exploring Innovation in Accessibility

One of the highlights of this edition is the growing role of artificial intelligence in accessibility.

With tools like AI now able to interpret complex documents, summarize reports, and extract meaningful insights, information that was once difficult to access is becoming far more usable for visually impaired individuals. This shift represents a powerful step toward greater independence and inclusion in both professional and everyday environments.

Supporting Independence Through Mobility

We also explore the importance of orientation and mobility training — a vital resource for individuals experiencing vision loss.

These skills provide practical tools for navigating everyday spaces safely and confidently, helping people maintain independence and stay connected to their communities.

Strengthening Our Community

Community remains at the heart of everything we do.

Our recent Members’ Meeting in Cape Town brought together over 60 members, families, and professionals for a day of connection, learning, and shared experiences. From research updates to practical tools and inspiring personal journeys, the event highlighted the strength and resilience of our community.

Advocacy and Awareness in Action

Retina South Africa also participated in the OSSA Congress in Cape Town, engaging directly with ophthalmologists and sharing information on retinal conditions, patient support, and referral pathways.

These opportunities are crucial in ensuring that individuals living with inherited retinal conditions are connected to the right care, information, and support.

Upcoming Event: Padel for Sight

We’re also excited about our upcoming Padel for Sight event taking place on 30 May 2026 in Kempton Park.

This purpose-driven event brings together corporates, professionals, and community members for a day of sport, connection, and impact.

With R25,000 in prizes and limited team spaces available, it’s more than just a game — it’s an opportunity to align with a meaningful cause and support the work of Retina South Africa.

Stay Connected and Informed

Our Out of Sight newsletter reflects our ongoing commitment to providing information, support, and hope to those living with inherited retinal conditions.

We invite you to explore the full edition and stay connected with the work we’re doing across the country.

👉 Read the full newsletter here: Out of Sight_ May 2026

In the latest episode of the Retinal Realities Podcast, we had the privilege of speaking with Ferdie Danzfuss — a software developer, Retina South Africa member, and the visionary creator of the groundbreaking Umsizi Reader app.

This conversation is both inspiring and practical, shining a light on what is possible when resilience, innovation, and technology come together to break down barriers.

A Personal Journey with Vision Loss

Ferdie lives with Stargardt’s Disease, a form of macular degeneration that affects central vision. Diagnosed in high school, he has experienced gradual vision loss over the years.

Despite this, Ferdie refused to let his condition define him. He pursued higher education, earning a master’s degree in Computer Science, and went on to build a successful career spanning decades in software development.

His journey is a powerful reminder that with the right mindset, tools, and adaptations, people with visual impairments can thrive academically and professionally.

Navigating Education with Visual Impairment

During the episode, Ferdie shares practical advice for students facing similar challenges:

• Request necessary accommodations, such as extra exam time
• Use digital materials wherever possible
• Leverage assistive tools like screen magnification and colour inversion
• Create a comfortable and accessible study environment

He also highlights the importance of self-advocacy — even when it feels uncomfortable — as a key part of success.

A Career in Tech: A World of Possibilities

Ferdi firmly believes that software development is an excellent career path for people with visual impairments. 

Why? Because technology itself provides the tools needed to succeed. From magnification software to screen readers and AI-assisted coding, the field is more accessible than ever. 

Today, advancements in artificial intelligence are further transforming how developers work, making it easier to code, problem-solve, and innovate – regardless of visual ability. 

The Birth of the Umsizi Reader

The idea for the Umsizi Reader app was born from a deeply personal challenge.

Ferdie found it increasingly difficult to read online content in his native language, Afrikaans. While many screen readers exist, they often lack strong support for South Africa’s diverse languages.

Determined to solve this problem, he began developing a tool for his own use — one that could read content aloud in local languages.

What started as a personal solution quickly grew into something much bigger.

A Game-Changing Accessibility Tool

Today, the Umsizi Reader is a powerful and versatile accessibility platform that supports all 11 official South African languages — a truly unique offering.

Key Features Include:

✅ Text-to-Speech Across Languages
Listen to content in your preferred language with a range of voice options.

✅ Document Support
Read PDFs, Word documents, EPUBs, and text files with ease.

✅ OCR Technology
Use your phone’s camera to scan printed materials and convert them into speech.

✅ Access to Local Content
Stay informed with built-in access to news, weather, and more.

✅ E-books and Knowledge Resources
Explore books from Project Gutenberg and Wikipedia content.

Free and Accessible for All

In a world where assistive technology can often be expensive, one of the most powerful aspects of the Umsizi Reader is that it is completely free to use.

This ensures that more people — regardless of financial circumstances — can access the tools they need to live independently and confidently.

Looking Ahead

While the Umsizi Reader already offers an impressive range of features, Ferdie hints at even more enhancements on the horizon.

As the platform continues to evolve, it promises to push the boundaries of accessibility even further.

This episode of the Retinal Realities Podcast is a celebration of innovation, determination, and the power of inclusive technology.

Ferdie’s story reminds us that accessibility is not just about overcoming challenges — it’s about unlocking potential for individuals and communities alike.

🎧 Listen to the full episode here: https://youtu.be/xepcj8eX3H4

📱 Download the Umsizi Reader or explore more: https://umsizi.ai/

Retina SA in Germiston is seeking a reliable and compassionate Driver Support Worker.

Key Responsibilities:

• Supporting visually impaired individuals with mobility and accompaniment to meetings and buildings
• Driving clients from taxi ranks or stations to the office and back
• Performing general driving duties for the organization

Requirements:

• Valid driver’s license with a clean driving record
• Must have had a drivers license and be a regular driver for more than 3 years
• Liaise with the Office Administrator to ensure that the Retina vehicles are well maintained
• Must have or be willing to obtain a PDP license
• Presentable, neat, and tidy appearance
• Good communication skills in English
• Able to do small set-up and dismantling jobs at exhibitions and events
• Able to carry medium loads
• Reliable and compassionate personality
• Available Monday to Friday, with occasional overtime

Salary: R5,240 per month

This position is ideal for a young person starting out in employment or a retired person looking for meaningful work.

Interested candidates should send their CV to: headoffice@retinasa.org.za

Closing Date: 13 May 2026

Orientation and mobility training teaches people with vision loss how to move around safely and confidently on their own.

Orientation means understanding where you are in space and figuring out how to get where you want to go. Mobility is the skill of actually moving safely through that space.

Why do you need it? When vision gets worse, especially later in life, you suddenly can’t rely on your eyes to spot steps, traffic, or obstacles. Training gives you new tools and skills so you can stay independent instead of feeling stuck at home.

It’s a step-by-step process. You usually start with a symbol cane: a short white cane you hold in front of you. It doesn’t touch the ground. Its job is simply to let other people know you have low vision so they’ll give you a bit more space.

Next comes the long white cane. That one actually sweeps the ground in front of you to find obstacles, steps, and changes in the surface. But you can’t just pick it up and go. You need proper training to learn the right technique, how to hold it, and how to walk with it safely.

After that you learn orientation. A qualified mobility instructor walks the route with you, points out landmarks you can feel or hear; like a certain curb, a noisy shop, or a change in the pavement, and teaches you exactly where to turn and what to watch out for. You do this a few times until the route feels familiar.

Modern phone navigation apps help a lot, but they’re not perfect. They can lose signal, miss exact entrances, or fail to warn you about a dangerous spot. That’s why even with a phone, it’s still valuable to have someone walk the route with you once or twice so you know the tricky bits by heart.

The goal is simple: to give you back freedom and confidence to go where you want, when you want.

For more information about how to access mobility and orientation training in your area, please contact the social workers at Headoffice@retinasa.org.za. 

Imagine receiving a 50-page report full of  tables and charts that your screen reader just can’t navigate properly. A few years ago, that document might have stayed out of reach. Today, AI changes  everything.

Upload the PDF to tools like ChatGPT, Claude, or  Gemini, and you can ask it to summarize the key points, pull out specific data  from tables, or answer questions about any section. What used to be  inaccessible suddenly becomes fully usable. No more struggling with poorly formatted tables or images that screen readers skip over.

On the internet, AI-powered assistants go even  further. They describe images on websites, explain complex layouts, and help  navigate apps that aren’t fully accessible to traditional screen readers. Apps  like Seeing AI, Be My Eyes, Envision, and our very own Umsizi Reader App let  you point your phone at printed materials, signs, or even your computer screen and get instant spoken descriptions.

In the workplace, this levels the playing field  like never before.

You can quickly process reports, generate summaries for meetings, proofread your own writing, or turn meeting notes into structured  action items, all without waiting for sighted colleagues to help. Tools like  these cut down on extra time and effort, letting you compete on equal terms  with everyone else.

The bottom line? AI isn’t just a nice-to-have;  it’s quietly removing barriers that used to hold visually impaired professionals back. Documents that were once off-limits are now open for  business. The playing field is getting flatter, one smart upload at a time.

On World Voice Day, we honour the power of speaking up — especially about the issues that often remain silent until it’s too late.

In her recent interview on Pulse FM, our Social Worker Lindiwe Maredi used her voice to shine a light on one of South Africa’s most overlooked yet devastating health challenges: diabetic retinopathy — a complication of diabetes that can quietly lead to permanent vision loss.

With millions of South Africans living with diabetes and many unaware of the risks, this interview brings critical awareness to a condition that is too often invisible until advanced stages. Lindiwe explains who is at risk, why vision loss is frequently unnoticed, and what practical steps can protect eye health.

Her voice brings visibility to what is usually unseen — and today, we celebrate that.

Listen to the full interview on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/7IWwD-wWTFg

Let her message reach more people who need to hear it.

Today, we are reminded that a single voice can protect sight, ignite awareness, and change lives.

In this World Health Day episode of Retinal Realities, Retina South Africa explores how healthy lifestyle choices impact not only our overall wellbeing, but our eye health and vision too.

Host Karen is joined by Manny, Victoria, and Lindiwe from Retina South Africa to unpack:

• Why healthy living matters beyond New Year’s resolutions
• The growing impact of lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and stroke
• The five pillars of a healthy lifestyle, including nutrition, physical activity, tobacco control, responsible alcohol use, and safe behaviour
• Practical steps to support good eye health, from annual eye tests to nutrition and UV protection

This episode reminds us that every choice we make, every day, shapes our future health — including our sight.

Listen to the full episode on our YouTube Channel at https://youtu.be/4ipZHx79WOs

Subscribe to Retinal Realities for more conversations on retinal health, lived experience, and advocacy.

Brought to you by Retina South Africa, with thanks to Roche Products.

Podcast Disclaimer: Any information, either audio or visual, contained on this Podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We are not medical doctors, and you should always contact your physician or other qualified health care professional for any medical advice you need. The views expressed in this podcast do not reflect the views of Retina South Africa or any of our sponsors.

Are you passionate about technology, people, and improving access to information for blind and low-vision South Africans? We invite you to join our team.

Retina South Africa is involved in the development of the Umsizi Reader App, a pioneering mobile application designed to read content aloud in multiple South African languages, including Afrikaans, isiZulu, isiXhosa, and Sesotho. While many screen readers struggle with local languages, our solution is built to meet this need with accuracy and inclusivity.

As our Customer Service Support Specialist, you will serve as the primary point of contact for our users. You will provide telephonic support, assist with troubleshooting, guide users through the application, and ensure a seamless and inclusive user experience.

Key Requirements:

• Interest in mobile application or systems development (experience in accessibility-focused solutions is advantageous)
• Demonstrated experience supporting individuals with visual impairments, including practical knowledge of screen readers such as VoiceOver and TalkBack
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain technical concepts clearly and without jargon
• Professional and empathetic telephone manner, with a calm and patient approach
• Strong administrative skills, including email management, filing, and general organisational support
• Proficiency with presentation and report generation tools/software.
• High level of attention to detail.
• Experience with research, preparation and proofreading of documentation
• Experience with website and social media updates

Contract Details:

• Fixed-term contract: 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2028
• Office based in Germiston
• Salary: Market related

Applicants should send their CV’s to headoffice@retinasa.org.za

Closing date for applications: Monday 13^th April