Photo courtesy of www.lannonharley.com

About the Program

"It's interesting how the verb 'to see' is used not just in the sense of looking, but to denote understanding. When somebody is blind, it's not just their eye sight they've lost but other ways of perceiving, of comprehending, of living fully. That's the point of being able to see and why it's important to treat blindness" - Jane Faulkner, Age Journalist, who visited Cambodia and shared her experiences in the book 'Through Other Eyes'.

Since its inception in 2002 the objective of The Fred Hollows Foundation's Cambodia-Australia Cataract Blindness Prevention Program has been to build the capacity of local eye health personnel and to assist the rural poor access high quality and affordable eye care services.

The goal of the Cambodia-Australia Cataract Blindness Prevention Program is to reduce the prevalence of avoidable blindness in Cambodia.

In partnership with the National Program for Eye Health, the program's comprehensive approach involves working at the national, provincial and community levels of the public health system in Cambodia. 

As part of the Cambodia-Australia Cataract Blindness Prevention Program The Foundation works in the provinces of Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Thom, Kampong Speu, Prey Veng and Kandal, as well the capital city of Phnom Penh.

Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Thom and Prey Veng are among the poorest provinces of Cambodia with an estimated total population of more than two million people. Blindness affects approximately 24,000 people in these three provinces.