Fred Hollows first visited Eritrea in 1987 when the country was still fighting for its independence from Ethiopia. He was hugely impressed with the medical community and the professionalism it maintained working in underground facilities and under fire.

Overview

After years of conflict, Eritrea's economy was decimated - social services were limited and more than half the population was living below the poverty line.

Since independence in 1993, substantial work has been done to rebuild the education and health systems and Eritrea now has a strong primary health care system in place.

However, life expectancy is still just 60.4 years and around 58 of every 1,000 children die before the age of five due to malnutrition and other poverty related diseases.

Fred Hollows, along with ophthalmologist Garry Brian, began providing equipment and training ophthalmic surgeons in Eritrea in the late 1980s.

In the early 1990s they began the work of building a laboratory to produce high quality, low cost intraocular lenses (IOLs) for use in African cataract surgery.  In 1994, Fred’s vision became a reality when the Fred Hollows IOL Laboratory officially opened in Asmara.

The Foundation has continued to work with the Ministry of Health in Eritrea, supporting survey, analysis and planning work, as well as building human resources, infrastructure and eye health services. This work is guided by the country's second National Blindness Prevention Plan, with the overall goal being to eliminate avoidable blindness in Eritrea by 2015.

About the program

The framework for our work in Eritrea is to support the Ministry of Health to develop a coordinated and comprehensive approach to providing eye care services throughout the country. This involves both direct support for some services, and assisting the establishment of additional partnerships for others.

At the primary level we support the training of health care workers so they can provide information about eye care, treat minor problems and refer patients to better equipped facilities when this is needed.

At the secondary level we are supporting the development of cataract surgical services in Zoba (regional) hospitals. This involves providing equipment, training cataract surgeons and developing systems for the efficient management of these services.  

At the tertiary level, or national level, our aim is to build the capacity of the national eye hospital to train and mentor secondary level personnel, as well as provide specialist eye care services.

The Foundation has also supported a number of surveys so we have well researched data to inform our work in Eritrea.

In 2006, The Foundation worked in partnership with the Eritrean Ministry of Health to undertake a National Trachoma Prevalence Survey. The survey was designed to assess not only the extent of trachoma, but also the reasons for its prevalence in some areas of Eritrea.

Following the survey, a national Surgery, Antibiotics, Face Washing and Environmental (SAFE) Program commenced in the areas where trachoma is endemic, with support from the International Trachoma Initiative (ITI).

In 2008, The Foundation supported another national survey to gather data on the nature and reasons for blindness in Eritrea, building the knowledge needed for more effective program delivery in the country.

“Fred's work is unforgettable. It is built like a statue in our heart” Dr Desbele Ghebreghergis, Medical Director of Birhan Hospital, Eritrea

Source: Eritrean Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness (RAAB 2008), UNDP Human Development Report 2010