Restore Critical Eye Care for Aging in NW Cameroon

Dear Friends and Valued Supporters, 

I am reaching out to you with heartfelt gratitude for your interest in our mission and with deep hope for what we can accomplish together.

For years, RECEWAPEC has stood beside the older persons of Northwest Cameroon, people who have endured hardship, displacement, loss, and the daily challenges of ageing in a conflict setting. Among their greatest struggles is the gradual loss of sight, which quietly steals independence, mobility, and quality of life.

Before the Anglophone crisis, our Eye Care Centre in Bambui was a lifeline. Each week, older men and women came for screenings, eyeglasses, treatments, and the comfort of being seen and cared for. But when conflict reached our community in 2017, the centre was vandalized and looted, and our equipment was destroyed.

Still, we refused to abandon the older persons who depend on us.

What We Have Managed to Do

Despite losing our facility, we remained committed. With determination and community support, RECEWAPEC found new ways to ensure older persons were not left behind.

1. We built a temporary but functioning eye care pathway.

We established a formal collaboration with Optician Mr Mbah Didacus in Bamenda. Through this partnership, we provide: 

• Objective and subjective refraction tests

• Automated refraction

• Fundoscopy examinations

• Examinations at a highly subsidized rate of just 5,000 FCFA

This arrangement has allowed us to continue offering essential services to elderly individuals who would otherwise have nowhere to go.

2. We provided affordable corrective lenses to those in need.

Thanks to this partnership, beneficiaries receive a 30% discount on glasses and lenses. Many older persons who lived with blurred vision, headaches, and difficulty reading can now see clearly again.

3. We strengthened community case identification and follow-up.

Our volunteers and Older Persons Associations (OPAs) have continued to:

• Identify elderly persons with vision problems

• Guide them through the referral process

• Ensure they receive and collect their glasses

• Monitor ongoing vision challenges and follow-up needs

This hands-on support has ensured that even the most vulnerable are not left behind.

4. We launched a NEW CBS Radio Eye Health Program.

This is one of our most important recent achievements.

Many older persons in remote or conflict-affected areas cannot access services or information. To reach them, we recently introduced a bi-weekly Eye Health Awareness Program on CBS Radio.

Through this radio program, we:

• Educate older persons about common age-related eye problems

• Explain symptoms of cataracts, refractive errors, glaucoma, and diabetic eye disease

• Inform communities about how to access our subsidized consultations

• Encourage early screening and follow-up care

• Share stories and testimonies that reduce stigma and fear

For many elderly people who cannot travel or who live in isolated villages, the radio will become their most reliable source of information and reassurance. 

5. We maintained careful documentation and planning.

Despite limited resources, we document every case and every referral. This allows us to track outcomes, plan better services, and prepare strong proposals for the rebuilding of the Eye Care Centre.

Why We Need Your Support Now

As proud as we are of these achievements, they are still not enough.

Our temporary structure cannot meet the overwhelming needs of thousands of older persons who are losing their sight. Many conditions are going untreated simply because we lack the equipment, space, and permanent staff to address them.

This is why we are asking you to stand with us.

We are launching a campaign to rebuild and re-equip the RECEWAPEC Eye Care Centre in Bambui. Your support will help us:

• Repair the vandalized building

• Replace stolen and damaged tools

• Acquire modern diagnostic and treatment equipment

• Recruit and train a permanent eye care team

• Expand mobile screenings across communities

Most importantly, your support will help restore the gift of sight.

You can help an elderly grandmother read her Bible again.
You can help an older man walk safely without fear of falling.
You can help a widowed woman recognize the faces of her grandchildren.

Your generosity becomes their hope.

On behalf of all the older persons whose lives you touch, and on behalf of our team who continues this mission with courage and dedication, we ask from the bottom of our hearts: please join us in restoring critical eye care for the elderly of Northwest Cameroon.

With deep gratitude,
The RECEWAPEC Team