Eye care leaders awarded at World Economic Forum

Two visionary eye care leaders from Australia and South Africa, Professor Brien Holden and Professor Kovin Naidoo, have been jointly awarded the Schwab Social Entrepreneur Award for Africa 2010, at the regional World Economic Forum in Tanzania today.

Through their work with ICEE, the two have been key figures in efforts to tackle avoidable blindness and vision impairment on the African continent.

The award was presented by Professor and Mrs Schwab during the Opening Plenary of the World Economic Forum on Africa in front of the continent's business and government leaders.

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship acknowledges outstanding leaders or visionaries who pursue poverty alleviation with entrepreneurial zeal and whose efforts are characterised by innovation, sustainability, reach and social impact. It also recognises their efforts in building strong and sustainable organisations, which are either set up as not-for-profit or for-profit companies. Winners are invited to attend regional World Economic Forums.

Professor Holden paid special tribute to the efforts of ICEE and Professor Naidoo. “To have been considered to have done something useful for the people of Africa is a great honour, one that is rightly deserved by the people from ICEE (and from optometry around the world who support them), who make a difference to vision care, blindness prevention and new opportunities for so many,” he said. “I am very grateful to Kovin Naidoo for including me as his partner in the nomination.”

“To be awarded Social Entrepreneur for Africa for 2010, encourages every person working in vision care and blindness prevention,” Professor Holden added. “For the Schwab Foundation and the World Economic Forum to recognise the importance of vision in this way is extraordinarily helpful. It will encourage all of us in eye care and NGOs working to prevent blindness to continue to try to create sustainable solutions that have a real effect on people's lives.”

Professor Naidoo said he was humbled to receive the award. “It is an honour for our work to be recognised in this way,” he said. “We hope this award helps alert other development sectors to eye care initiatives and stimulates even greater social entrepreneurship efforts in eye care,” he added.

Professor Naidoo said the award will help contextualise the role of blindness prevention and eye care programmes in the broader development agenda. “It is crucial that we acknowledge the impact that blindness and vision impairment has on people’s lives, its role in perpetuating poverty and the broad affect it has on development efforts”, he said.

Professor Holden added, “The award means that the 100 or so people of ICEE – and the hundreds in other great eye care INGDOs – that work extremely hard to create the eye care personnel needed, the infrastructure, affordable treatment and quality outcomes, will be boosted by the recognition that their efforts are bearing fruit.”

“On a personal level, it is of immense pride that Kovin Naidoo is getting the recognition that he does not seek but richly deserves, not of course for the tasks that have been completed, but that the challenge is being met effectively.”

By joining the Schwab Foundation community and World Economic Forum network, Professors Holden and Naidoo will have further opportunities to extend the work of ICEE in Africa and globally.