The Fred Hollows Foundation is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

aid organisation based in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, which was founded in 1992, by eye surgeon

Fred Hollows Frederick Cossom Hollows (9 April 1929 – 10 February 1993) was a New Zealand–Australian ophthalmologist who became known for his work in restoring eyesight for people in Australia and many other countries through initiatives such as The ...

. The foundation focuses on treating and preventing

blindness Visual or vision impairment (VI or VIP) is the partial or total inability of visual perception. In the absence of treatment such as corrective eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment, visual impairment may cause the individual difficul ...

and other vision problems in people and communities. It operates in Australia, South East Asia, East Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

History

In 1976,

and teams of health workers set out on the National Trachoma and Eye Health Program with the aim to eliminate

trachoma Trachoma is an infectious disease caused by bacterium '' Chlamydia trachomatis''. The infection causes a roughening of the inner surface of the eyelids. This roughening can lead to pain in the eyes, breakdown of the outer surface or cornea ...

and other eye conditions in rural and remote communities, and also to record the status of eye health in rural Australia. As a result of this program, the number of

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

suffering from blindness was halved. The Fred Hollows Foundation was founded on 3 September 1992 by Fred Hollows, shortly before he died. Hollows was an

ophthalmologist Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...

and a social justice activist. Following Fred's passing, his widow, Gabi Hollows, ensured that his work in Vietnam and many other countries continued through the foundation.

Programs

The foundation trains eye care providers. The foundation also supports the prevention and treatment of eye disease by screening for diseases that cause avoidable blindness, performing surgery, providing spectacles, addressing lifestyle factors that contribute to disease, and conducting other sight saving interventions. The foundation provides technology and resources needed to upgrade and construct eye health clinics.

Africa

In Africa, the foundation focuses on comprehensive eye health systems with an emphasis on the training of medical staff, screening for poor vision and eye disease, subsidised treatment and provision of equipment and infrastructure in countries such as:

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

, and

Burundi Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million peop ...

South Asia, East Asia & Middle East

The foundation works throughout South Asia, East Asia and the Middle East in countries such as:

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

Timor Leste Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, Lao PDR, and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. In each of these countries the Fred Hollows Foundation strives to build comprehensive eye care systems.

Indigenous Australia

The foundation works with partners to advocate to governments for sustained investments in services to improve eye health and also to close the health inequality gap between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Australians with the rest of the Australian population. In February 2008, the foundation committed up to A$3 million to build an eye clinic in

Alice Springs Alice Springs () is a town in the Northern Territory, Australia; it is the third-largest settlement after Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin and Palmerston, Northern Territory, Palmerston. The name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William ...

, Australia. By April 2010, this clinic had not been built with criticism that the

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government or simply as the federal government, is the national executive government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The executive consists of the pr ...

were relying on a charity to build the clinic. The Minister for Indigenous Health,

Warren Snowdon Warren Edward Snowdon (born 20 March 1950) is an Australian former politician who served as a member of the House of Representatives from July 1987 to March 1996, and again from October 1998 until May 2022. Initially representing the Division o ...

, said the foundation was best placed to provide the eye clinic service.

Accreditation

The foundation is a member of the Australian Council for International Development ( ACFID), and is also a signatory to the ACFID code of conduct that "defines standards of governance, management, financial control and reporting with which non government development organisations (NGDOs) should comply." Australia's overseas aid agency,

AusAID Australian Aid is the brand name used to identify projects in developing countries supported by the Australian Government. As of 2014 the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has been responsible for Australia's official development ...

, has accredited the foundation, and as such the foundation is eligible to receive funding from the Australian Government for overseas aid programs.

Awards and recognition

The foundation has been named one of Australia's Top 5 Reputable Charities. The foundation was named 2013 Australian Charity of the Year and was recognised by The Global Journal as one of the world's top 50 NGOs. * 2005 – Winner of the National Award for Excellence in Community Business Partnerships in recognition of the successful partnership between The foundation, Woolworths and the Wugularr community for the Community Stores Program. * 2009 – Winner of the Gold Star award for non-profit video at the International Fundraising Congress in The Netherlands. * 2013 – Winner of the National Charity Award in the inaugural Australian Charity Awards – a new partner program of The Australian Business Awards * 2013 – Ranked within the top fifty best non-government organisations (NGOs) in the world in an annual list of the top 100 NGOs published by the Global Journal

Controversy

In late 2009, it was claimed that in the previous year the foundation lost more than $2 million with the investment bank Goldman Sachs JBWere. A former member of the organisation's British board, Nick Crane, said the losses were evidence of a new entrepreneurial zeal in the Australian head office, and that the foundation was at risk of losing sight of its true purpose because newer members of the Australian management team had backgrounds in business rather than charity. The foundation denied these claims, and responded that the $2 million loss was incorrect and that the foundation had lost $270,000 from investments but had actually gained $350,000 income. However, the value of the foundation's investments had been written down by $1.6 million by end of 2008. The earlier article claims the financial report was not published. After a letter from Gabi Hollows to the editor of the ''

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper in ...

'', the article was corrected.

References

External links

The Fred Hollows Foundation Australia official website

The Fred Hollows Foundation New Zealand official website

The Fred Hollows Foundation United Kingdom official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fred Hollows Foundation Medical and health organisations based in New South Wales Health charities in Australia Organizations established in 1992 Organisations based in Sydney Eye care in Australia 1992 establishments in Australia Foundations based in Australia Medical and health foundations Indigenous health organisations based in Australia