Jordan: New pilot eye health project to transform lives for school-aged children

Jordan: New pilot eye health project to transform lives for school-aged children

Amman, Jordan: The Fred Hollows Foundation, a global leader in eye health, in partnership with the Institute for Family Health (IFH), announced the launch of the project in Amman. The three-year pilot project focuses on treating children with visual impairment caused by uncorrected refractive errors, improving access to eye care services, and promoting eye health awareness. At least 10,000 refugees and vulnerable Jordanian children and their caregivers will benefit from it annually.

In the Middle East and North Africa, investing in eye health has proven to be economically rewarding for the region, delivering a return of $US21.4 for every dollar invested in treating uncorrected refractive error.

The Fred Hollows Foundation CEO, Ian Wishart, said: "The partnership demonstrates a shared commitment to ending avoidable blindness and restoring sight to those in need. Right now, 90 percent of vision loss is preventable or treatable and we can address it using highly cost-effective interventions we know will work."

"The pilot project aims to address and treat refractive errors among refugee children and marginalized Jordanian children. This is a leading cause of vision impairment which often hampers learning and social development in children.”

Commenting on the partnership, Dr. Ibrahim Aqel, IFH director, said: “The pilot project holds profound