Associated Press Highlights Fortified Bouillon to Fight Malnutrition in West Africa
Augustine Okoruwa, Regional Program Manager for Food Fortification, recently spoke to the Associated Press about the impacts of the climate crisis on malnutrition in West Africa and how fortified bouillon cubes can help people add essential nutrients to their diets. “Farmlands are destroyed, you have a shortage of food, the system is strained, leading to […]
Protecting a Community from Onchocerciasis with Preventive Medication
When Patrice Messolo was a boy, his grandfather and uncle became very sick. They both lost their vision and developed skin lesions on their legs due to what Patrice would later learn was onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness. Without treatment, this neglected tropical disease can cause disfiguring skin conditions and permanent blindness. Seeing what […]
Engaging Local Leaders to Fight Malnutrition in Cameroon
As a newborn, Rose Fenged’s nephew and godson, Wouffé, was malnourished and got sick frequently. Rose noticed that many other young children in her community in Cameroon’s Far North region were also underweight and likely not getting the nutrition they needed to support healthy growth and development. As Third Deputy Mayor for the Koza municipality, […]
Speaking Technically: Investing in the Fight Against Neglected Tropical Diseases
We recently spoke with Dr. Angela Weaver, Vice President for Neglected Tropical Diseases. Angela leads Helen Keller Intl’s work to control and eliminate these diseases – specifically lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis), river blindness (onchocerciasis), schistosomiasis, intestinal worms (soil-transmitted helminths), and trachoma. Often called “diseases of poverty”, this group of parasitic and bacterial diseases can cause blindness, […]
Improving Vision Care in Cameroon
More than 26 million children and adults in Africa are living with some form of visual impairment. As many as 15 percent of these experience vision loss because of common refractive errors, such as near-sightedness or astigmatism, which can be corrected with a simple pair of eyeglasses. Although a majority of people with refractive error […]
Clear Vision Brings True Potential into Focus
Living with childhood cataracts meant that 10-year-old Ulrich Amassoga had never experienced clear vision before. He had difficulty in school and dealt with bullying from classmates because of his condition. Two years ago, Helen Keller began providing vision screenings in schools in Cameroon in partnership with USAID’s Child Blindness program, the Ministry of Public Health, […]
Building Brighter Futures by Saving Sight
By the time she was six years old, Treasure Winner Mafau Azemafack’s family had already fled violence three times. Originally from Fontem in Cameroon’s South West region, Treasure Winner, her parents, and three siblings eventually settled on Dschang, in the country’s West region. During this time, Treasure Winner began to experience headaches, but moving so […]
Breaking the prevalence of poverty-related diseases in Cameroon
When Helen Keller health workers visited Biaback Guiliagne’s home in a rural Cameroon village, he was surprised at first, but quickly warmed up when he realized the visitors could help relieve some of his pain. For more than 30 years, Biaback had been suffering from lymphatic filariasis – or elephantiasis, a parasitic neglected tropical disease […]
3 Things to be Optimistic about in 2023
Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence. Helen Keller Just like Helen Keller herself, many of the families Helen Keller Intl works with face staggering odds that can seem insurmountable – from food insecurity to climate crises to violent conflicts. Yet, despite these challenges, it is […]
Creating the vision for students to thrive in Cameroon [PHOTO ESSAY]
After many decades of eye health being largely ignored in Africa, Helen Keller is teaming up with partners in Cameroon to reach more than 20,000 students with timely vision interventions. Glasses and other eye care can make all the difference in a child’s life – enabling them to succeed in school, make friends, and achieve […]
