In less than ten years ICEE has worked in more than 40 countries to develop sustainable eye care systems. Today in South Africa, the Giving Sight to Africa project in collaboration with the Department of Health KwaZulu-Natal aims to provide eye care and affordable glasses to one million people in just one province by 2010.

Chantal, came to an ICEE clinic in 2007 - because of her poor vision she had difficulty at school and playing with friends in the playground.

In the classroom, Chantal was moved from the back of the class to the front, “I couldn’t see the board, I couldn’t see what I was doing and what was in front of me. I couldn’t see when I was writing and all my work was squashed up,” Chantal said.

Her mother remembers, “Her writing wasn’t too good. Instead of writing on top of the line, she would write below the line and she’d squeeze all her words together so you couldn’t understand what she was writing. That’s why I took further steps to find out what’s wrong. At first it was very worrying about her left eye but the right eye is not too bad.”

Thanks to an eye examination and a pair of glasses to correct her myopia (short or near sightedness) she can now actively participate in school and safely enjoy activities with her friends.

Like so many who attend ICEE clinics in South Africa, Chantal had never had an eye examination or a pair of glasses. This programme is made possible with funding from the Standard Chartered Bank “Seeing is Believing” and Optometry Giving Sight.