In its bid to provide healthcare services for undeserved communities in Nigeria, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Friday, launched an ophthalmic outreach programme in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State.
The health mission was aimed at making quality healthcare accessible, particularly in underserved communities.
The initiative, which is a humanitarian effort by the Saudi government, brought the acclaimed “Saudi Noor” ophthalmic volunteer programme.
The event was powered by the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief).
It was held at Makkah Specialist Eye Hospital in Elebu, Ibadan.
Our correspondent reports that the outreach reflected Saudi Arabia’s commitment to supporting global health initiatives and promoting volunteerism.
The Press Attache of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed Alsahabi, who addressed journalists at the event explained that the programme was organised in order to tackle avoidable blindness in Nigeria.
He added that the mission of the team is to make quality healthcare accessible, especially for the underserved population in the country.
He said “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has taken another humanitarian step by bringing its acclaimed “Saudi Noor” ophthalmic volunteer programme to Ibadan, Oyo State.
“This effort is a continuation of the Kingdom’s global vision to make quality healthcare accessible, especially in underserved communities.
“Residents of Ibadan and surrounding areas will benefit from a range of free, high- impact eye care services, including advanced diagnostic screenings, cataract surgeries with intraocular lens (IOL) implants, treatment of refractive errors, and distribution of prescription eyeglasses.
“The outreach is implemented under the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and His Royal Highness Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
“This Ibadan phase marks another major milestone in KSrelief’s mission to combat avoidable blindness in Nigeria.
“Since its introduction in 2019, the blindness prevention initiative has delivered over 218,000 eye exams, enabled more than 21,000 sight-restoring surgeries, and distributed over 45,000 eyeglasses.
“Previous interventions have taken place in Yobe, Kano, Bauchi, and Lagos, impacting thousands of lives.
“Globally, KSrelief has implemented over 3612 relief projects in more than 108 countries since its establishment in 2015.
“Its blindness prevention programmes are active in countries like Yemen, Sudan, Bangladesh, and Mauritania, aligned with international commitments. Saudi Arabia’s move to bring the “Saudi Noor” initiative to Ibadan deepens its longstanding ties with Nigeria and reaffirms its commitment to human dignity, access to quality healthcare, and the elimination of preventable blindness”.
