The Ogun state government says it has conducted free eye screening for 1,020 students of public secondary schools across the three senatorial districts.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker, who disclosed this journalists in Abeokuta, the state capital, said, about 146 glasses were also distributed to the students.
She explained that 386 students were screened in Ogun central, while 302 were screened in Ogun West and 332 screened in Ogun East.
Coker noted that, the students were screened in commemoration of year 2021 World Sight Day, tagged, “Love Your Eyes, Save Your Sight.”
She disclosed that 2.2 billion people have near or distance vision impairment with one billion of case yet to be addressed, adding that, Nigeria’s prevalence rate of blindness stands at 0.78 percent, with Ogun having the least of visually impaired victims.
She said, “Nigeria’s prevalence rate of blindness is 0.78%. Ogun State fortunately has the least prevalence rate.
“This can be attributed to the high rate of immunisation to prevent measles blindness in children, and presence of specialists in delivery of eye care services in our secondary and tertiary institutions.”
She also noted that, ‘jigi Dapo’, an initiative of the government to provide wide array of eye care services, eye examination, provision of eye glasses and other treatment options for people especially Junior Secondary school students at subsidised rate.
The Commissioner said the initiative targets 312 secondary schools and 318 primary schools in the state.
