Freelance Correspondent
Pupils from primary schools across the country are set to benefit from special eyecare.
Speaking at the launch of the second phase of the Adopt-a-School Vision Screening Programme yesterday, Minister of Education Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly expressed her gratitude to those leading the programme for helping some of the nation’s most vulnerable children to access eyecare testing and prescription glasses.
“Children in 40 of our primary schools are going to get the benefit of vision screening, and those who need spectacles will be provided with this. I could only say how grateful the Ministry of Education is,” she said.
The main goal of the programme, launched in 2020, is to focus on supporting the educational needs of students, and ultimately increasing the school performances of students and ensuring each child has the requirements to make a prosperous future for themselves.
“We are focusing on these primary schools because we want to increase student and school performance. We want these students to have the same benefits that everyone has to succeed,” Dr Gadsby-Dolly said.
Yesterday’s launch highlighted the challenges that primary school children face with their vision and the move to address the issue via a partnership between Unicef, EyeNet and the ministry.
EyeNet Limited managing director Dr Robin Seemongal-Dass explained the importance of early detection, adding that “up to 80 per cent of a child’s learning depends on vision, yet many children with vision problems go undiagnosed simply because they don’t know what normal vision looks like.”
Seemongal-Dass stressed the need to ensure that children have all the resources available to them to enjoy a good future.
“Addressing the issue that deeply affects our children’s future is important. We must ensure that every child has access to the care and resources needed for a successful education,” he added.
