These images are released today to celebrate World Teachers Day (October 5 2016) by charity Sightsavers to show how teachers can play a key role in tackling widespread health problems that prevent their students from learning.
Every year, children in low-income countries miss up to 500 million school days due to common health problems, such as visual impairment, poor nutrition, worm infection, and disability. Refractive error - the need for glasses – affects 10% of school children in developing countries and this common health problem limits many children’s ability to learn school.
Many children in more remote areas don’t have access to reliable and affordable health services.
Throughout this month, teachers in Senegal, Ethiopia and Ghana will also carry out eye tests and distribute intestinal worm tablets. By the end of next month, they will have reached over 30,000 school children in total across Africa. Today’s images capture the initiative being rolled out in Siem Reap, Cambodia earlier this year. Within just 3 weeks in August, teachers in Siem Reap carried out eye tests on over 12,000 school children across 48 schools and glasses were given to every child who needed a pair.
This simple and cost effective scheme is being led by the governments of these countries who are supported by Sightsavers and the Partnership for Child Development (PCD).
For additional information: http://www.sightsaversusa.org/initiative-to-strengthen-school-health-launched/
5 October 2016
