And turning now to health….Launched in 2024 The WHO SPECS 2030 initiative, is aimed at helping countries to increase the number of persons who can access eyecare by 40%.
The initiative has now made its way to Belize, solidifying partnerships with other NGO's like BCVI, One Sight and the Essilor Luxottica Foundation. These partners met to discuss a way forward in achieving SPECS 2030's goals in Belize. Here's how it went. Jomarie Lanza reports.
Belize has joined alongside WHO and the 20 other countries currently engaged in the SPECS 2030 initiative, which seeks to assist 1 billion people globally with uncorrected vision impairment.
The Director of Public Health & Wellness told us how they plan to address those gaps they have identified here in Belize when it comes to improving the public access to eyecare.
Dr Melissa Diaz Musa, Director of Public Health & Wellness
"So we are here today to talk to do a launch of the WHO SPECS 2030 initiative working in collaboration with BCVI the Belize council for the visually impaired the ministry of health and wellness and one sight. WHO SPECS 2030 is a global initiative that has bene launched where they are trying to ensure that persons who have vision impairment or vision issues have readily accessible screening, cost effective services in order for them to improve their sight. As I had mentioned in the opening remarks thereabout 2.2 billion persons who suffer worldwide with visual issues and 1 billion of those persons have not had access to get tested and to get glasses to improve their vision. So this launch is just the beginning of the launch we will be working closer with BCVI because BCVI has offices in all of our facilities and BCVI and the ministry of health and wellness will work together to improve screening. So places we would like to ensure that persons are screened, schools for example we do have many students who might not have been picked up or never visited an ophthalmologist or an optometrist to determine whether or not they do need glasses for reading or for seeing the board so the initiative is to help to correct refractive errors by utilizing glasses and to help to ensure that people have easy access to these services."
So what are the changes that we should expect to see now that Belize has joined in on the initiative? The Executive Director for BCVI explained that the project requires rigorous on the ground work.
Carla Ayres Musa, Executive Director, BCVI
"Some are looking at human resource development as a key component of SPEC's focus as well as our focus. It is something that if you look throughout the country and you think about where can I go see an eye doctor? I can't see properly so what are my options? At BCVI we have 5 clinics throughout the country and those are equipped or staffed by and ophthalmic assistant and an optometrist. We want to be abl to increase the reach that we have so not just waiting for people to come to us we want to be able to go go out and do more that involves, working with schools doing school screenings and it involves training community health workers and teachers and other health officers as well to be able to do basic visual acuities or assessments and refer people in for a proper eye exam but also us going out and seeing people and doing full clinics in the communities as well."
