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Help kick blindness out of Africa
This October Sightsavers International is commemorating 20 years of bringing hope to millions through the largest ongoing medical donation programme. In October 1987, Merck & Co. Inc took the pioneering decision to donate the treatment that prevents infection from river blindness, free of charge to those who need it as long as necessary.
As a major supporting partner of the Mectizan® distribution programme, in 2006 alone, Sightsavers International provided treatment to over 11 million adults and 3 million children across West Africa.
Whilst eye care may be something those in the UK consider a basic right, millions of people in the developing world are at risk of eye infection or disease because they do not have access to treatment. Onchocerciasis or ‘river blindness,’ which can eventually cause blindness if not treated, is the fourth most common cause of blindness in the world. It’s estimated that as many as one million people are blind or severely visually impaired through river blindness. The impact on the lives of families and communities can be devastating with children missing out on education to act as carers for those infected, people not being able to earn a living and support a family.
As a Sightsavers Ambassador, Graeme Le Saux visited Kaduna state in Nigeria where river blindness is endemic to see the progress made by the Mectizan® distribution programme and how it is changing the lives of so many men, women and children across Africa.
As a major supporting partner of the Mectizan® distribution programme, in 2006 alone, Sightsavers International provided treatment to over 11 million adults and 3 million children across West Africa.
Whilst eye care may be something those in the UK consider a basic right, millions of people in the developing world are at risk of eye infection or disease because they do not have access to treatment. Onchocerciasis or ‘river blindness,’ which can eventually cause blindness if not treated, is the fourth most common cause of blindness in the world. It’s estimated that as many as one million people are blind or severely visually impaired through river blindness. The impact on the lives of families and communities can be devastating with children missing out on education to act as carers for those infected, people not being able to earn a living and support a family.
As a Sightsavers Ambassador, Graeme Le Saux visited Kaduna state in Nigeria where river blindness is endemic to see the progress made by the Mectizan® distribution programme and how it is changing the lives of so many men, women and children across Africa.
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