Operation Eyesite Universal
Inspired by Dr. Ben Gullison, a Canadian physician working in Sompeta on India’s east coast, Arthur Jenkyns, a Calgary businessman, founded Operation Eyesight Universal in 1963. Jenkyns marshalled the efforts of others and raised funds for people needing eye care in India.
Operation Eyesight developed into a partnership between generous Canadians and Indian eye doctors, and later expanded its scope to include regions of Africa and south Asia, as well as donors from other countries. From the beginning, the organization emphasized capacity building and sustainability by supplying local medical professionals with the training, equipment and facilities required to help their own people.
Today, Operation Eyesight is directly active in India and the African nations of Ghana, Kenya, and Zambia, investing in sustainable treatment, prevention and community development activities to address specific problems as well as the root causes of blindness.
285 million people in the world suffer from blindness and low vision, while 80% of the cases can be avoided!
In developing countries, being visually impaired is not a disability, it's a death sentence – especially for the very young and old.
Blindness and poverty is a terrible combination.
Operation Eyesight supports local solutions by local people.
Community Eye Health Program brings care to people without access.
Quality, sustainable eye care combined with community development is changing lives right now.