Across the Pacific we support local partners to build more effective and independent eye health systems.
Papua New Guinea should have at least 90 eye doctors, yet currently, there are only 12. We are committed to working with our partners to help meet this critical shortage.
Ridged with mountainous landscapes and surrounded by coral reefs, much of the population is geographically isolated from health care services.
Over 80% of Vanuatu’s population lives in rural, isolated villages with limited access to health care. Alongside local partners, we helped establish the country’s first national eye care program in 2001.
Fiji is home to the Pacific Eye Institute, who provide eye care services in both Fiji and in outreach locations across the Pacific, performing around 1,500 eye surgeries a year.
Tonga is a remote collection of islands in the tropics. With a strained public health sector, many people suffer from diabetes eye disease that threatens to rob their sight.
Samoa’s remote location and limited resources make it difficult to access eye care services. We support a local eye care team led by the country’s only permanent ophthalmologist, trained at the Pacific Eye Institute.
Kiribati is one of the most physically remote countries in the world. With no resident ophthalmologist, they rely on regional outreaches to treat cases requiring surgery.
In addition to the countries highlighted above, we also provide support to Nauru and Tuvalu and have worked with the health authorities in the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Marshall Islands, Niue, Timor-Leste, and Tokelau to train 44 eye care clinicians. We continue to respond to requests from Pacific island governments and assess these based on needs and funding.
The Pacific region faces a unique set of challenges in providing access to quality eye care, with its remote islands, limited healthcare infrastructure, and high rates of preventable blindness. It is also the region most at risk from the impacts of climate change and natural disasters, which further strain healthcare systems.
By training local specialists and supporting national eye care programs, we aim to bring sight-saving services to those who need it most—building stronger, healthier communities across the Pacific.
The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ is a registered charitable organisation under the Charities Act 2005.
Charities Commission registration number is CC23722.
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