Our work in Guinea
Our work in Guinea focuses on preventing diseases such as river blindness. In 2020 we helped to give out 1.7 million treatments to protect people against these diseases.
It’s thought that more than 1.4 million people in Guinea are at risk of trachoma and more than 7 million at risk of river blindness.
Sightsavers has been working in Guinea since 1991 to to tackle neglected tropical diseases, and to treat eye conditions such as cataracts. We help to train doctors, nurses and village distributors to administer medication that can prevent disease spreading and stop patients suffering further sight loss.
Schistosomiasis and intestinal worms are also endemic in the country. As part of a push to eliminate the diseases, we distribute deworming medication to schoolchildren that are at risk, support education programmes, and train teachers and volunteers to identify the diseases.
Sightsavers is working to improve Guinea’s healthcare system by training ophthalmologists and bringing in health workers from other West African countries, such as Togo, Niger, Mali and Benin. We also provide surgical equipment and support cataract operations.
At a glance
Total populationWhat we focus on
Key programmes
Previous programmes
How we’re making a difference in Guinea
Guinea was one of the countries where we needed to adapt our work in order to safely resume delivering medicines to those who need it.
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