President Tinubu (right) told Prof. Andrew Bastawrous of the Peek Vision Foundation (middle) that Lagosians enjoyed free eye screening and surgeries while he was serving as the State Governor in 2001. Photo: Presidency/X
President Bola Tinubu has approved the provision of 5 million glasses for Nigerians with sight impairments.
The President stated this on Friday when he received the Founder and CEO of Peek Vision Foundation and Co-Founder of the Vision Catalyst Fund, Prof Andrew Bastawrous at the State House in Abuja.
“My first experience was with my mother of blessed memory. She was ill, and she could not recognise me. When I intervened, she was treated and given a pair of glasses. The next question she asked me was: I have you, and you are able to do this for me. What about those other women and their children who may not have somebody like you to intervene for them? “So I made a promise to her that I would vigorously pursue the mass provision of eye care and that I would provide free eye screenings and surgeries to people because of that question my mother asked me and because of her passion to see others healed. He said.
In a statement by Ajuri Ngelale, the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, said more than 24 million Nigerians are battling vision impairments.
Prof. Bastawrous said his experience with eye impairments at a young age changed his ideas about life, saying that he wouldn’t have been successful if he had gone blind.
According to Prof Bastawrous, eye care is still chronically under-resourced in many countries, with estimates showing less than 2% of Nigeria’s health budget is spent on eye health.
He commended the President for what he described as an assemblage of excellent individuals in the health sector, and promised to provide support.
Writing by Oluwaseyi Ajibade; Editing by Adeniyi Bakare