Following a successful phase one pilot last year, Essilor, The Fred Hollows Foundation and partners have announced the expansion of the See Now campaign in India, which continues to be fronted by celebrity ambassador Mr. Amitabh Bachchan.
See Now aims to raise awareness of the importance of regular eye tests in the fight to combat poor vision and avoidable blindness. Over the course of five weeks, the campaign will reach 200 million people with crucial messaging on eye health and will offer free screenings, eyeglasses and treatment to 400,000 people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
See Now, a global campaign created by The Fred Hollows Foundation and supported by Essilor’s social impact fund Vision for Life and other partners, strives to increase awareness and drive public mobilization on ending avoidable blindness and vision impairment by increasing the number of people accessing eyecare services and eyeglasses. The campaign, fronted by Bollywood superstar Mr. Amitabh Bachchan, has an urgent yet simple message for millions of Indians: go and get your eyes checked.
The phase one pilot campaign ran in five districts in the Uttar Pradesh region last year and reached 32 million people, with 9,200 people participating in free vision screening programs.
Phase two, which will run from now to mid-March, will take in an additional 34 districts where implementation partners will set up 260 eye health centers as well as screen 50,000 school students. This week saw children from schools in the districts among the first recipients of free glasses following screening sessions.
Raising awareness of the importance of regular vision screening is essential in India where poor vision affects an estimated 550 million people and costs the Indian economy US$37 billion every year in lost productivity. It is adversely impacted by low awareness of the seriousness of the issue and limited access to vision care, particularly in rural areas. Misconceptions, cultural stigma and myths surrounding glasses also prevent people seeking the treatment they need.
Raising awareness about eye health is critical to our ambition to eliminate poor vision from the world in a generation. The support of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan for the cause and working with The Fred Hollows Foundation and other like-minded organizations, give us the collaborative confidence and energy to achieve even greater reach and awareness with See Now.
Commenting on the launch, Jayanth Bhuvaraghan, Chief Mission Officer, Essilor International and EssilorLuxottica said: “Raising awareness about eye health is critical to our ambition to eliminate poor vision from the world in a generation. The support of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan for the cause and working with The Fred Hollows Foundation and other like-minded organizations, give us the collaborative confidence and energy to achieve even greater reach and awareness with See Now.”
The campaign resulted in an increase in eye screenings across our partner eye camps and more people attended camps in Lucknow. That tells us we are making a significant impact in promoting eye health. With the support of our partners on the ground for this latest campaign, we can ensure more people are able to work, provide for their families and improve their quality of life.
The Fred Hollows Foundation Deputy CEO Nick Martin said he was encouraged by the response from the phase one pilot in Uttar Pradesh last year. “The campaign resulted in an increase in eye screenings across our partner eye camps and more people attended camps in Lucknow. That tells us we are making a significant impact in promoting eye health. With the support of our partners on the ground for this latest campaign, we can ensure more people are able to work, provide for their families and improve their quality of life.”
The See Now campaign is made possible through collaboration across the eye health sector, including The Fred Hollows Foundation, Essilor, Sightsavers, Sadguru, Indian Vision Institute, Operation Eyesight Universal, Mission for Vision and VisionSpring – as well as other local partners.
Follow the campaign at:
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WeAreSeeNow/
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/weareseenow