Mission
Operation Eyesight Universal’s mission is to prevent blindness, help eliminate avoidable blindness, and restore sight.
The organisation works in developing countries across the African continent and in South Asia, focusing on countries such as Kenya, Ghana, Zambia, Nepal, and India. In previous projects, Operation Eyesight worked in Malawi, Liberia, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh as well as in South America in countries like Chile, El Salvador, and Peru. It has also carried out projects in Haiti, the Caribbean, and Israel.
Supported Causes
In its mission to prevent blindness and restore sight, Operation Eyesight supports causes that provide eyeglasses, preventative care, and eye surgery.
Projects must aim to prevent or treat blindness.
Projects
Some of the programs backed by Operation Eyesight are:
- Operation Eyesight Universal Institute for Eye Cancer at the L V Prasad Eye Institute in India.
- Arogyavaram Eye Hospital in India.
- Community programs in India, including school screenings, outreach clinics, and eye-health awareness programs.
- Kitale District Hospital eye unit in Kenya.
- Watborg Eye Services in Ghana.
- Seeing is Believing program in Ghana.
- Nepal Eye Hospital in Nepal.
- Fateh-Bah Eye Hospital in Nepal.
The Foundation's History
In 1963, Arthur Jenkyns met Dr. Ben Gullison, who was working at a mission hospital in India. Jenkyns became inspired to establish Operation Eyesight Universal to raise funds for people in India who needed eyecare but could not afford it. The organisation evolved into a partnership between generous Canadian benefactors and eye doctors in India, later expanding to Africa and South Asia. In the 1980s, Operation Eyesight also began funding prevention programs and then in the 1990s started working collaboratively with governments and hospitals to provide sustainable treatment and prevention.