Liz Smith, Co-founder and CEO of EYElliance takes to the stage at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) 2023 meeting in New York City in September to share EYElliance and our partner's Commitment to Action, elevating Universal School Eye Health and it's achievability on the global development stage. A transcript of that commitment can be found below:
"I want to tell you a story about an eight-year-old girl. She was in the third grade, and she was having difficulty seeing the black board clearly. She wasn't able to copy down anything that the teacher was writing on the board, and she couldn't understand why the other students weren't having the same problem.
Soon, she started to fall behind in school. But that summer, the summer before fourth grade, she got her first pair of eyeglasses, and the fourth grade turned out to be very different for her.
That little girl was me. And I was lucky to get those eyeglasses when I did. I co-founded EYElliance to ensure that all boys and girls and adults can get the glasses they need to see clearly. And we're not out there alone.
Today, EYElliance is making a commitment to collaborate with Ministries of Health and Education across three African countries. We will enable governments in low- and middle-income countries to scale school-based vision screenings and provision of eyeglasses nationally.
Teachers will play a critical role in this work, we will train teachers to conduct basic vision screenings, on site and in schools. And those teachers will then be able to identify the children who need to be seen by an eye doctor.
This intervention was pioneered decades ago by NGOs. But when ministries take the lead, it is one of the most cost-effective interventions with immediate impact on educational outcomes and test scores.
Universal School Eye Health is something that global community can achieve. This is doable. So, we invite you to join the movement.”
To find out more visit www.clintonglobal.org/2023 or get in touch with EYElliance.
