BRI offers hope to the blind in Africa

Blindness and visual impairment have long bedeviled African nations with more than 26 million people in the continent having some form of visual impairment, according to World Health Organization statistics.

Though about 80 percent of blindness is preventable and treatable, WHO Africa said millions of people in the African region remain at risk of visual loss due to the lack of eye care services.

This is why the recently concluded Belt and Road Ophthalmologist Training Program is being hailed as an important step in improving Africa's professional skills and filling local demand for ophthalmologists.