The Leprosy Mission announces Wellesley Bailey Award Winners 2024
![Profile pictures of the four winners of the award: two men and two women](https://leprosymissioninternational.contentfiles.net/media/images/WBA_web_banner_1.2e16d0ba.fill-900x400-c75.png)
After a pause due to the Covid-19 pandemic, The Leprosy Mission’s Wellesley Bailey Awards returned in 2024, the organisation’s 150th anniversary year.
In this special anniversary year, and in light of the postponement caused by the pandemic, the panel of judges have decided to grant four remarkable individuals the Wellesley Bailey Award.
The Wellesley Bailey Awards were created in 1999 to honour those who have made extraordinary contributions to society through overcoming the social stigma and physical challenges of leprosy.
The award celebrates the life and work of Wellesley Bailey, the man who founded The Leprosy Mission 150 years ago in 1874. The awards have taken place nine times since 1999.
This year, the winners are:
![A man from Myanmar in dark clothes stands on a balcony overlooking a road with palm trees](https://leprosymissioninternational.contentfiles.net/media/images/84505965_129327615241409_82339.2e16d0ba.fill-430x430-c75.jpg)
U Soe Win from Myanmar: U Soe Win is a founding member and Chairperson of the Myanmar Association of Persons Affected by Leprosy (MAPAL), an organisation which started in 2018 and now has around 600 members across 16 branches. Leprosy has caused U Soe Win impairments, huge financial losses, and led to three suicide attempts. After overcoming these challenges, U Soe Win has travelled the country and the world to raise awareness of leprosy, speaking truth to power, and offering moral support to people at their lowest points. Thanks to U Soe Win, countless people have come forward to receive leprosy treatment and have had renewed confidence to engage in their communities. Throughout the worst days of the pandemic, U Soe Win was crucial in ensuring MAPAL members received the support they needed.
Read U Soe Win's full story >![A woman from DR Congo in a white shirt and pink trousers sits in a wicker chair](https://leprosymissioninternational.contentfiles.net/media/images/RS43782_20220503_DRC_Kinshasa_.cc5850c7.fill-430x430-c75.jpg)
Sandra Dongo Botolo from DR Congo: Sandra is a pioneer in DR Congo. Before, many people were ashamed to speak publicly about their experience of leprosy. When Sandra started to share her testimony publicly, many more became encouraged to do the same. Sandra’s journey with leprosy has seen her face years of ill-health and disability as well as facing rejection from her family. Today, Sandra has become a natural leader and as such, she is now the Coordinator of OPALCO, a new national association of persons affected by leprosy in DR Congo. Through her work, Sandra has been a vocal presence across local, national, and international meetings where she has passionately presented the perspectives of her colleagues in OPALCO and thanks to her voice, the issue of leprosy has become better and better known and better cared for in Congo.
Read Sandra's full story >![A women from India in bright yellow/green clothes speaks into a podium microphone](https://leprosymissioninternational.contentfiles.net/media/images/DSC_0727.2e16d0ba.fill-430x430-c75.jpg)
Maya Ranavare from India: Maya Ranavare has dedicated her life to advocating for communities of persons affected by leprosy across India. Her journey started in a leprosy colony, where she was born to a mother affected by leprosy. She was diagnosed with leprosy at age 6 and was denied access to school. After overcoming a lifetime's worth of setbacks, Maya has gone on to lead a life of success. Among many successes, Maya’s work has meant that more than 3,000 persons affected by leprosy were able to access a crucial maintenance allowance. She has forged strong relationships with local and political leaders and used those relationships to leverage support for much-needed civic amenities in leprosy colonies, ensuring that basic necessities were not denied to those who needed them most. According to the people she serves, Maya stands as a symbol of hope and empowerment.
Read Maya's full story >![A man from Bangladesh in a white hat and grey suit sits behind a microphone at a desk](https://leprosymissioninternational.contentfiles.net/media/images/MD_KAMAL_UDDIN.2e16d0ba.fill-430x430-c75.jpg)
Kamal Uddin from Bangladesh: Kamal Uddin’s journey with leprosy has seen him face serious impairments to his hands, feet and eyes, as well as rejection and discrimination across employment, community, and marriage. Today he is the founding Chairman of Bangladesh’s organisation of persons affected by leprosy, the ALO Society. This is a national level organisation that supports people affected by leprosy, persons with disability and persons from disadvantaged backgrounds. They are represented across 130 districts with more than 20,000 members nationally. Under Kamal’s leadership, the ALO Society has implemented four projects aimed at improving leprosy and Covid awareness, income generation activities, and providing child and education support. Through this work, more than 800 students have received education support and 1,027 Covid-19 awareness sessions were run, engaging more than 10,000 people. Kamal’s participation in conferences, seminars, and TV talk shows has been instrumental in educating the public about leprosy.
Read Kamal's full story >The four winners of this award will be invited to join The Leprosy Mission at its 150th Anniversary Celebration in New Delhi on 16 November 2024, where they will be presented with their award.
The response to the awards
Colin Obsorne, TLM’s International Chair, was a member of the selection committee for this year’s Wellesley Bailey Awards and he said,
“We received a huge number of nominations for the Wellesley Bailey Award this year and the calibre of each nomination was really high. We believe these four winners are fully deserving of this award. Their contributions to their communities are remarkable and they deserve recognition and applause not just for their achievements but for all the challenges they have had to overcome because of leprosy. They are all an inspiration.”
We also spoke to Beatriz Miranda, the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on discrimination against persons with leprosy who congratulated the winners,
“In times when conflict, violence, and injustice seem to prevail, the work of Mr. U Soe Win, Ms. Maya Ranavare, Mr. Kamal Uddin, and Ms. Sandra Dongo gives us hope for the future. They represent the voices of thousands of persons affected by leprosy who are committed to fighting for a more just and peaceful world. I hope the footprints they leave will be followed by many activists and human rights advocates. Congratulations to the winners.”
Thank you and what's next
We want to thank everyone who nominated someone for these awards. The fact that there was both a high number of nominations and a high calibre of nominations demonstrates the incredible, life changing work of persons affected by leprosy across the world. As an organisation, we will continue to grow our partnerships with Organisations of Persons Affected by Leprosy not only because it is the right thing to do, but – as these nominees demonstrate – it is the most effective way to bring about change in communities too.
The Wellesley Bailey Awards will be back after their usual two-year break in 2026.
Please join us in congratulating U Soe Win, Maya Ranavare, Kamal Uddin, and Sandra Dongo Botolo!