Project launched to screen, treat 8,000 students in Centre region.

The project being implemented by the Minister of Public Health and of Secondary Education, is with the support of the US humanitarian organisation, Helen Keller Intl, HKI.

The launch of the BrightSight Phase III for Centre Region, was jointly chaired by the Centre Regional Delegate for Public Health, Dr Azoumbou Mefant Therese and Centre Regional Delegate for Secondary Education, Ndemba Sidonie Therese on behalf of their respective ministers. 

The event which brought together focal points and representatives of some secondary schools within the Nkolndongo and Djoungolo health districts, was also attended by the Coordinator of the National Blindness Control Programme, Prof Assumpta Lucienne Bella.

According to the Centre Regional Delegate for Secondary Education, Ndemba Sidonie Therese, refractive errors represent the most common eye issue among school-age children in Cameroon. However, the refractive errors are easily correctible with eyeglasses, but without access to care, many children suffer unnecessarily. 

She further explained that during the first and second phases of the BrightSight project, a lot of positive academic results were registered from the students who benefited from the project, thus the need to extend to the third phase. 

“The particularities of this third phase is that we have seen the positive impacts on the works of children. When we look at the indicators when they never had the glasses and after they received the glasses, there has been a positive impact on their academic results,” she said. 

Officials, focal points in group photo

While thanking the stakeholders for their commitment to the project, she insisted that the successful implementation of the project will have a positive impact on students in these schools that were not included during the previous phases. 

During the screening, children detected with visual acuity impairment will be provided free eyeglasses while those with more complex eye problems will be referred for free surgery.

Entre HKI representative

Speaking on behalf of HKI Country Director, Prof Robert Mba, the HKI Director of Food Systems, Alex Ndjebayi the project is aimed at improving the eye health and school performance of underserved school-aged children through increase screening and treatment of children with eye issues. 

He added that they are so far satisfy with the successes registered by the project whose first phase was launched in 2021. 

The project which began in the Efoulan health District of Yaounde, was then extended to the Biyem-assi in the Centre Region and Dschang in the West Region. 

According to the HKI official, it had been wished that this phase of the project be extended to all districts in Yaounde but was limited to just two districts within Yaounde due to funding constraints.

Besides the two districts in Yaounde, the BrightSight III project has also earmarked another 8,000 children in the Mifi health district of the West region making a total of 16,000 children. The project expected to be launched in the days ahead for the West Region, targets children aged between 11 to 15 years old. 

A preliminary results from a recent operational research carried out by Helen Keller Intl on 17,237 students aged 10 to 15, shows a 9.8% prevalence of severe visual impairment and 43.7% of refractive errors.   

It should be recalled that under the BrightSight project, over 60,000 school-going children have been screened for eye complications with over 1,500 haven benefited free eye classes with the Centre and West regions of Cameroon. In addition, more than 300 teachers have been trained to inspect and screen eyes of children in school with 3 children having undergone surgery as part of this project.