CIOMAL Foundation

08/09/2026

📚 Preserving more than six decades of leprosy research

Since its first issue in 1960, Acta Leprologica documented decades of scientific progress in the global fight against leprosy.

Today, CIOMAL is pleased to launch an important project to digitize the complete collection of Acta Leprologica — around 10,500 pages of scientific and historical material.

A complete collection has been preserved at the Instituto Lauro de Souza Lima (ILSL) in Bauru, Brazil. Thanks to a collaboration between CIOMAL, ILSL and the Instituto Aliança Contra Hanseníase (AAL), this unique collection will be digitized in high definition and made searchable through OCR.

The aim is both to preserve this exceptional scientific heritage and, in the future, to make it accessible to researchers, health professionals and new generations around the world.

For CIOMAL, this project also means reconnecting with an important part of its own history. In its very first issue, Acta Leprologica reflected the Order of Malta’s commitment to fighting leprosy while defending the dignity and rights of persons affected by the disease.

More than six decades later, we are proud to help preserve and share this legacy.

Our sincere thanks to the Instituto Lauro de Souza Lima, to AAL for facilitating this collaboration, and especially to Dr Dejair Caitano for his dedication to this initiative.

10,500 pages. More than six decades of scientific history. One legacy to preserve and share.

31/08/2026

From Segregation to Justice

On 17 June 2026, the CIOMAL Foundation, together with the Permanent Mission of the Sovereign Order of Malta to the United Nations in Geneva, organized a side event during the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council.

The event brought together UN Special Rapporteurs, diplomatic representatives, civil society organizations and persons affected by leprosy to discuss the historical and continuing human rights violations faced by persons affected by the disease, and the need to advance justice, dignity and inclusion.

We are pleased to share the recordings of this important event:

▶️ Watch the full UN Side Event:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnrGwQt6bIw&t=2s

▶️ Watch the closing remarks by Bernard de Laguiche, President of the CIOMAL Foundation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Vuz6-ooLhc

We invite you to watch, share and help keep the rights and voices of persons affected by leprosy at the heart of the international human rights agenda.

From Segregation to Justice: Addressing Historical and Continuing H...

11/05/2026

📌 Bulletin CIOMAL – Printemps 2026

Notre nouveau bulletin est en ligne.
En 2025, grâce au soutien de nos donateurs et partenaires, la Fondation CIOMAL a poursuivi ses actions de lutte contre la lèpre et d’accompagnement des personnes touchées par la maladie à travers plusieurs pays.

Quelques chiffres clés :
• 6’500 personnes dépistées au Cambodge
• 941 patients accompagnés au Brésil
• 2’439 professionnels de santé formés
• 980 sandales orthopédiques distribuées au Vietnam
• 118 étudiants soutenus au Cambodge

Au-delà des chiffres, ce sont des vies, des parcours et des dignités retrouvées.

Depuis près de 70 ans, la Fondation CIOMAL agit pour le dépistage précoce, la prévention des handicaps et la réhabilitation socio-économique des personnes affectées par la lèpre.

🙏 Merci à toutes celles et ceux qui rendent cette mission possible.

❤️ Vous souhaitez soutenir nos actions sur le terrain ?
Chaque don contribue concrètement à prévenir les handicaps, accompagner les patients et restaurer leur dignité.

👉 Faites un don : https://ciomal.payrexx.com/fr/pay?tid=e5d9b220

03/03/2026

Message de notre partenaire Aliança Contra Hanseníase (Alliance Against Leprosy) au Brésil 🇧🇷

Grâce au soutien de CIOMAL et de ses donateurs, Alliance Against Leprosy a pu installer une nouvelle cordonnerie pour les personnes affectées par la lèpre. Elle permet aujourd’hui de fabriquer des chaussures adaptées, essentielles pour prévenir les complications, améliorer la mobilité et renforcer la qualité de vie des patients.

Un grand merci à toutes celles et ceux qui rendent ces actions possibles 🙏

Votre confiance soutient concrètement le travail des équipes de terrain et change des vies, pas à pas 👣

—DR Laila Delaguiche Alliance Against Leprosy

👉 Pour celles et ceux qui souhaitent soutenir cette action : https://ciomal.org/

05/02/2026

Where roads disappear, access to care must continue. 🌍

Our partner Alliance Against Leprosy (AAL), together with FUHAM, has launched a new initiative in the Brazilian Amazon to improve access to care for people affected by Hansen’s disease.

The project combines a fixed unit in Manaus 🏥, providing continuous outpatient services, and a mobile river unit 🚤 reaching remote communities where travel can take days — sometimes weeks — by boat.

Beyond treatment, the initiative focuses on foot care, mobility support, and the fight against stigma 💜, helping people regain autonomy, confidence and dignity.

Together with our partners, we continue working to ensure that distance is never a barrier to care.

Support our work: www.ciomal.org

19/01/2026

On 3 December 2025, 60 former leprosy-affected persons with disabilities (LAPWD) from several provinces, together with members of the PAL Association (CAHD) and CIOMAL Foundation staff, participated in the 27th National Day of Persons with Disabilities and the 43rd International Day of Persons with Disabilities in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

This important event was an opportunity to reaffirm our shared commitment to inclusion, dignity and equal participation for all persons with disabilities. 🤝

Your support makes a difference. 💙
By donating, you help strengthen inclusion, dignity and access to care for persons affected by leprosy and disabilities.

👉 Learn more or support our actions: https://ciomal.org/

17/11/2025

🌟 Meet Sreynich, a young woman whose determination and courage inspire us every day.

Coming from a hardworking farming family in Kampong Thom, Cambodia, Sreynich divides her time between university—where she studies history—and helping her parents in the fields. She also supports her younger siblings by teaching them how to read and write.
Despite the challenges, her commitment to education never fades.

Thanks to the support of the CIOMAL Foundation, Sreynich is able to continue her university studies and work toward a brighter future for herself, her family, and her community.

At CIOMAL, our mission is to fight against leprosy and its consequences by restoring dignity, promoting autonomy, and supporting long-term development. Education is a key part of this vision.
Your generosity makes this possible.

💛 A heartfelt thank you to our donors and partners for making stories like hers a reality.

📣 Call to action, you can support us on our website :https://ciomal.org/

Together, we change lives.

🔖 Hashtags

03/11/2025

Miss CHOEM Chanthou’s inspiring journey 🌾

Miss Chanthou is a former leprosy-affected person who is receiving sponsorship from the Fondation CIOMAL.
She is now in her second year at university, studying electronic engineering in Takeo province, in southern Cambodia.

Her mother, also a former leprosy-affected person and now a widow, inspires her strength and perseverance. Chanthou is the eldest of six children. Her younger brother left school to help support their family, who work tirelessly in the rice fields.

Last year, she successfully passed the national exam and entered college. She dreams of working in an electronics factory near her home, so she can provide for her loved ones and build a better future.

Thanks to CIOMAL’s generous support, she continues her studies with determination and hope. 💛

📸 Discover her story in images below.
🙏 Fondation CIOMAL – supporting education, dignity, and hope for all.

💬 To support the Fondation CIOMAL and help more young people like Chanthou, visit:

👉 www.ciomal.org

14/01/2025

Village authorities thank to CIOMAL Foundation, PAL association and donors who constructed a new house for Mrs Heng Liem in Koh Kong province. Mr. Heng Liem is 58 years old with server disabilities on eye, claw fingers hands, and amputation on both legs. CIOMAL supports him with a new house include a toilet, water filter tank, and a pack of rice in order to make his family live in better condition.

04/12/2024

On the 3rd of December 2024, 55 former leprosy affected persons with disabilities(LAPWD) coming from several provinces and CIOMAL Foundation's staff participated in the 42th International Day of Persons with Disabilities which was organized by Ministry of Social Affair Veteran and Youth and Disability Action Council at Phnom Penh, Cambodia under the theme “Inlcusion of persons with disabilities in digital context “.