THE
AWARD
LIVELIHOOD
RIGHT
Press Release
Stockholm, 26 September 2017
Ethiopian activist Yetnebersh Nigussie
Named 2017 Right Livelihood Award
Laureate
Acclaimed Ethopian activist and advocate for inclusion of people with some kind of
disability, Yetnebersh Nigussie, has been announced a Laureate of the 2017 Right
Livelihood Award, widely known as the ‘Alternative Nobel Prize’.
Nigussie is recognised by the Jury “for her inspiring work promoting the rights and inclusion
of people with disabilities, allowing them to realise their full potential and changing
mindsets in our societies”.
The announcement was made at the International Press Centre at the Swedish Ministry for
Foreign Affairs by Ole von Uexkull, Executive Director of the Right Livelihood Award
Foundation, and Maina Kiai, Jury member and former UN Special Rapporteur on the rights
to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.
Upon receiving the news, Nigussie commented, “It is an absolute honour to receive the
prestigious Right Livelihood Award. The recognition provides welcome fuel to the disability
and development community’s ongoing call for inclusion and full participation of people
with disabilities in all spheres of life.”
Becoming blind at the age of five after a meningitis infection, Nigussie escaped an early
marriage and was sent to the Shashemane Catholic School for the blind. The nuns running
the school helped her to focus on her capabilities. Nigussie’s activism for human rights is
based on her own experience of being discriminated against coming from a “developing
country”, being young, a woman – and blind.
Through her tireless efforts, she has changed perceptions on disability in her own society
and internationally with the compelling message: “Focus on the person, not the disability.
We have one disability, but 99 abilities to build on!”
Currently a Senior Inclusion Advisor with the international disability and development NGO,
Light for the World, Nigussie fights for the inclusion of the more than 1 billion people in the
world with some kind of disability. She strives to create inclusive conditions for future
generations by connecting national realities with international frameworks.
Ole von Uexkull commented: “Yetnebersh Nigussie is a shining star of hope for all, not just
for the more than 1 billion people with some kind of disability. With her personal story and
her political work as an activist, she makes a strong case for positive social change, based on
people’s rights and people’s abilities. With Yetnebersh Nigussie, we honour a courageous
woman who shows the enormous potential of inclusive societies.”
The 2017 cash award of SEK 3 million (EUR 315,000) is shared equally by Yetnebersh
Nigussie, the human rights lawyer Colin Gonsalves (India) and the investigative journalist
Khadija Ismayilova (Azerbaijan). This years’ honorary award goes to the American lawyer
Robert Bilott, responsible for one of the most significant victories for environmental law and
corporate accountability of this century.
Ole von Uexkull said: “This year’s Laureates protect the rights and lives of citizens across
three continents. With their courageous work for human rights, public health and good
governance, they tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges at their very core. At
a time of alarming setbacks for democracy, their successes show us the way forward towards
a just, peaceful and sustainable world for all.”
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