Trachoma is still a major cause of blindness and low vision in rural Ethiopia; with 37.5% of the world’s trachoma found there. Orbis has been working in rural areas of Ethiopia since 2002, partnering with the International Coalition for Trachoma Control (ICTC), the Carter Center, Sightsavers, Fred Hollows Foundation and the Ethiopian government to implement the World Health Organisation's SAFE (Surgery, Antibiotics, Facial Cleanliness and Environmental change) strategy to eliminate blinding trachoma as a public health problem.
In 2002, we were working in just three districts, administering around 400,000 doses of Zithromax, an antibiotic which prevents trachoma infection. Last year (2018), we distributed more than eight million doses of antibiotics across 93 districts and carried out over 10% of the global number of surgeries to tackle the late stage of trachoma (TT). This year, we are working in 124 districts across southern Ethiopia.