By Ciara Baumgartner | Fundraising Officer
Four million people in Ethiopia are blind or visually impaired. Cataracts are the leading cause, affecting some 1.7 million people. The country also accounts for 30% of trachoma in Sub-Saharan African countries, or 1.2 million people.
Orbis has been fighting trachoma in Ethiopia for over 20 years. Thanks to our wonderful supporters and partners, we've made great progress towards eradicating trachoma in the country. But we won't rest until avoidable blindness is eliminated
Teshager’s future was uncertain, he was on the verge of losing his vision. Now he’s starting school.
Both of his eyes were highly infected and irritated, with swelling in his upper and lower eyelids. Teshager was suffering from trichiasis, a painful condition, caused by the repeat trachoma cases, in which scarring causes the eyelid to turn in on itself and the eyelashes to scratch the eye. For him, every blink felt like his eye was scratching sandpaper.
His father, Amanuel, a farmer and a fellow sufferer of repeat trachoma infections, did not want his son’s sight to hold him back in life like it did for him. Because of is eyesight problem Amanuel was not able to finish school.
Thankfully, our teams had caught wind of Teshager’s and Amanuel’s long-term suffering and determined the best course of treatment that would save Teshager’s sight and preserve his fathers, too. A double win!
Amanuel’s surgery was successfully carried out on both of his eyes at the Orbis-supported Damote Sore Health Center, while Teshager traveled to a child-friendly eye care center established by Orbis at Menelik II Hospital, in Ethiopia’s capital.
With healthy vision and renewed hope, we are delighted to share that Teshager will be finally starting school this coming September.
While Teshager’s story has a happy ending, the trachoma crisis in Ethiopia is real, and it is urgent.
Your continued kindness, coupled with the dedication of our partners, means that kids like Teshager can get the treatment they deserve to see clearly and flourish throughout their childhood.
Thank you for helping us power our fight against preventable blindness and creating happier lives for people at risk from trachoma in Ethiopia.
We could not transform lives without your ongoing support!
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