The three institutions have been honored for their “remarkable, long-term, and impactful commitment” to preventing and treating avoidable blindness, as stated today in a communiqué by the Champalimaud Foundation, which awards the prize valued at one million euros.
The Champalimaud Foundation notes that the awarded entities “stand out for their complementary and comprehensive actions, which over decades have promoted eye health and reduced the burden of visual impairment, especially in the most disadvantaged regions of the world.”
Founded in 1975, the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness is an alliance of about 300 organizations in over one hundred countries, including Portugal, promoting policies, partnerships, and campaigns advocating for eye health.
In Portugal, the IAPB has two members, the Champalimaud Foundation and the Association of Licensed Optometry Professionals.
Among the most recent initiatives of the IAPB, the Champalimaud Foundation highlights the creation of guidelines for school eye health programs, which have already benefited 700 million children worldwide.
According to the IAPB, at least one billion people worldwide suffer from vision impairment simply because they lack access to eye care.
“This is not just a health issue. The consequences are far-reaching: unemployment, poor academic performance, mental health issues, social isolation, and increased risk of injury and disease,” said Peter Holland, the executive director of the IAPB, in a statement to Lusa.
Peter Holland pointed out that the global burden of poor eye health already costs the world economy $411 billion (€351 billion) and represents 6.3 million years of schooling lost annually.
“The vast majority of vision loss cases are preventable,” he noted, warning that if no action is taken, the number of people affected will rise to 1.8 billion by 2050.
Launched in 1990, the “SightFirst” program by the Lions Clubs International Foundation has provided access to eye care for over 544 million people worldwide, enabling more than nine million cataract surgeries, training over 2.6 million eye health professionals, and constructing, renovating, or equipping over 1,700 eye care facilities.
Additionally, the program has offered rehabilitation services for individuals with irreversible blindness or low vision and supported initiatives to control and eliminate blindness-causing diseases, such as trachoma and onchocerciasis.
In Brazil, a Portuguese-speaking country where the Lions Clubs International Foundation has been active for several years in partnership with the local Lions Club and the government, initiatives like cataract surgeries, professional training, and the expansion of medical infrastructures “have contributed to the reduction of preventable blindness and the improvement of the sustainability of eye health networks” in the country, remarked Fabricio Oliveira, president of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees and a native of Brazil, to Lusa.
Founded in 1992 in Australia by ophthalmologist Fred Hollows (1929-1993), the foundation bearing his name “has provided restorative vision care to the most marginalized communities” and is present in over 25 countries across Asia, Africa, and Oceania.
In 2024, the institution facilitated eye disease screenings for 8.1 million people, distributed over 178,000 pairs of glasses, trained more than 66,000 healthcare professionals, and enabled the construction, renovation, and equipping of 1,084 medical facilities, training centers, and schools.
More than 16.5 million people have been treated with antibiotics for trachoma, an infectious eye disease caused by the bacterium ‘Chlamydia trachomatis.’
Beyond medical care, the Fred Hollows Foundation invests in research and innovation and advocates for healthcare access policies specifically targeting the poorest, the elderly, and women.
“Eye health has long been neglected as a critical development issue, but the foundation seeks to change that, as improving eye health leads to better education, employment, and inclusion and can break the cycle of poverty,” said Nicola Watkinson, President of the Fred Hollows Foundation’s Board of Trustees in the UK, to Lusa.
Nicola Watkinson emphasized that the work promoted by the foundation “not only restores sight but also transforms lives, enabling people to regain independence, pursue education, and improve their livelihoods.”
The António Champalimaud Vision Award is given annually by the Champalimaud Foundation, honoring in odd years the work of institutions combating blindness and visual diseases, especially in developing countries, and in even years, scientific research in the field of vision.
