On Saturday 21 March 2026, Operation Smile South Africa celebrated its 20th anniversary at the spectacular Cipla offices in Century City. It was an evening defined by the stories that have shaped our journey and the people who make our mission possible.
Host Paul Miller (CEO, Cipla Africa) chats to Operation Smile’s Sarah Scarth about the extraordinary global impact of an organisation that has transformed millions of lives around the world, one smile at a time.
Every Operation Smile patient bears a badge of hope – a scar that shows they received the surgical care they needed, found hope, and began a new chapter in life.
During our recent Surgical and Dental Programme in Mthatha, Operation Smile South Africa – in partnership with the Eastern Cape Department of Health and the Department of Health South Africa – reached more than 1,000 people through free cleft surgeries, dental care, and oral health education.
In a major push to reduce the backlog of cleft lip and palate surgeries in Gauteng, Operation Smile and Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital (NMCH) – with key support from Life Healthcare – delivered an intensive weekend surgical programme from 16 to 18 May 2025.
Our Operation Smile team traveled to Mthatha over the weekend of 1-3 November to bring life changing surgery to cleft patients from the surrounding rural areas.