Following a regional meeting on eye health organized by West Africa Health Organisation (WAHO) in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire on 4-6 June 2002, it was recommended that a Regional Eye Health NGDOs Coordination Group be established to support WAHO and : Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Member States to eliminate avoidable blindness by the…
The global health organization Helen Keller International has announced the appointment of Dr. Emmanuel d’Harcourt as its new Chief Program and Innovation Officer. Dr. d’Harcourt assumed the post on August 12, 2019 and is based in the organization’s New York headquarters. He succeeded Helen Keller International’s former Senior Vice President of Programs, Victoria Quinn, who…
IAPB organized a South East Asia Regional consultative meeting on eye health on 29 and 30 June 2019. The main objectives of the meeting were: To produce a white paper in line with the goals and objectives of VISION 2020 and WHO GAP 2014-2019, on existing eye health status of each country in the region…
The Islamic Development Bank and a Light for the World – led consortium is aiming to put an end to avoidable blindness in 13 African countries. In 2008, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) launched the Alliance to Fight Avoidable Blindness (AFAB). The first generation of AFAB (2008-2015) focused mainly on treating cataracts. Six million dollars…
On International Women’s Day, Victoria Sheffield, President & CEO, International Eye Foundation and Vice President, IAPB reminisces on her journey in eye care… My wonderful opportunities to build strong friendships, working relationships, and trust were not given lightly, but working hard and proving oneself attracts amazing people who help along the way. I began my…
USAID has officially launched its latest Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) programme which has just been named the Act to End NTDs – West program. The $200 million programme will help to control or eliminate trachoma, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminths (including hookworm, roundworm and whipworm) in 11 West African countries including Benin, Burkina Faso,…
On World/Universal Children’s Day, George Smith, Orbis International on their five-year Seeing is Believing Project in Shanxi, China and how it has created a Comprehensive Child Eye Health Network. China faces significant issues in many areas of child eye health. The Chinese Ministry of Education’s report (“China’s First Oversight Report on Quality of Compulsory Education) highlights…
This year’s World Sight Day is just past (11th October 2018 to be exact). World Sight Day was celebrated across the IAPB membership with press conferences, walks, outreach activities, events with MoH, and more, and we loved seeing all of your celebrations and tags on social media. We have already received emails from many of…
When Merck and Company made Mectizan® available for mass distribution, grants from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the River Blindness Foundation enabled IEF to pioneer the first “community-based” Mectizan® distribution programme in Africa. This was done in 1990 in collaboration with Africare in Adamawa Province, Nigeria. At the same time, the first…
May 2018 saw me evaluating eye health in one of the biggest refugee camps for displaced Rohingyas in Bangladesh. In 2017, the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazaar on Bangladesh’s border with Myanmar saw the biggest ever influx of refugees–nearly 690,000 refugees–after clashes broke out in Myanmar in August. The camps merged into one taking in…
Dr. Howard Cohn has been announced as the 2017 recipient of the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s (AAO) Outstanding Humanitarian Service Award. The recognition, which will be bestowed at the AAO’s annual meeting in November, recognizes Academy members for contributions in charitable activities that are above and beyond the typical duties of an ophthalmologist. Cohn was…
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