Global Strategy

Vision loss is linked to a host of other development issues including poverty, lack of education, gender inequality, and lack of access to clean water and healthcare. Today, we are setting our sights on addressing the root causes of avoidable vision loss and raising the bar in global eye health. Through all of this, we will take practical steps to minimize the environmental impact of our work. While all of the Sustainable Development Goals are interconnected, in the image above we have highlighted six goals that are most closely connected to our mission.

We will achieve the above goals through our five programming areas

Hospital Strengthening

We invest in hospital equipment and infrastructure, provide training for healthcare professionals and establish vision centres at the community level. The vision centres provide eye exams and eyeglasses and refer patients to the base hospital for surgery or other treatment.

Community Eye Health

We train local community health workers who conduct door-to-door eye health screenings, refer patients to a vision centre or hospital for treatment, and provide health education.  

Integrated Eye Health

Eye health is linked with a range of other
development areas. We’re working to
strengthen areas of overlap between primary
eye care and primary health care in our
countries of operation. In doing so, we’re
able to address the root causes of avoidable
vision loss.

Disease Control

We are addressing the major causes of avoidable vision loss: cataract, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, trachoma, uncorrected refractive error and other conditions. From eye screenings and prevention to treatment and follow-up care, our partners provide comprehensive eye health services. 

Research and Advocacy

Driven by a wealth of community-based data, we are contributing to a global body of health research and informing national eye health policies.