The Republic of Equatorial Guinea President of the National Organization of the Blind (ONCIGE), Juan Rocoso, unveiled the national Visual Health Campaign to prevent blindness and detect refractive and ophthalmological problems in order to increase school attendance and performance.
The Campaign, which began 16 August, runs until 30 September in all institutions of learning and education in Equatorial Guinea, including university students and professional career centers.
Equatorial Guinea offers free eye consultations and testing, as well as significantly reduced prices for glasses and corrective wear.
During the last campaign in 2016, Equatorial Guinea successfully treated 679 patients, 106 of which were operated on in the country. The rest were treated in Spain in partnership with the La Arruzafa Foundation of Córdoba.
The ONCIGE 2018 Action Plan, which outlines the Campaign, will also oversee the operations related to visual health in Bata and study the effectiveness to improve the efficiency of the overall program.
Equatorial Guinea has made significant strides in social welfare, including health and disease education and prevention, in recent years. The Government of Equatorial Guinea has invested resources in building state-of-the-art health facilities, nutritional access programs, and educational sessions to identify and prevent diseases. Equatorial Guinea leads Africa in per capita investments in health care, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).