By Elvis Tah
The Standard Chartered Bank (Cameroon) is not only a place to save money. It has also put up a front to fight poverty and save lives.
Standard Chartered hopes to reduce blindness in Africa
The bank is now responding to the needs of blind people. Recently, it donated over 1720 intraocular lenses to the Christian Blind Mission in Cameroon.
This donation falls within the bank's programme of Seeing is Believing, launched in 2003 with the aim of making a difference to the lives of 10 million people by World Sight Day 2010, through the prevention and reversal of avoidable blindness.
It aims to achieve this through medical, educational, social and community-based projects.The donation was made through Sight Savers International, a major eye-care NGO, and one of the implementing agencies of the Standard Chartered Group.
The distribution of the lenses across the country was as follows Baffoussam, 600 lenses, Ngaoundere 250, Douala 100, Bertoua 50, Mbingo, 450, Banso, 170, Mankon, 100.
According to the CEO of Standard Chartered Bank in Cameroon, Paul Sagnia, "Restoring sight, or preventing someone from going blind is one of the easiest ways to combat poverty.
This is a global issue, and Standard Chartered, through Seeing is Believing, is contributing to a global effort to eliminate avoidable blindness. We are happy to be leading the corporate response to meeting the VISION 2020 aim, 'the elimination of avoidable blindness by the year 2020'."
On his part, the National Coordinator for the Christian Blind Mission, Peter Mue Ngha, appreciated the contribution of Standard Chartered Bank.
Said he: "50 percent of blindness (cataract) in Cameroon is curable through operation, and lenses are the most critical part of the operation. Standard Chartered Bank has, therefore, supported 1700 surgeries with their donation."
He added that, in addition to the lenses, Standard Chartered Bank Cameroon has raised over 17 million FCFA through fund raising, which will be used to support cataract surgeries and other community education programmes in the country.
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