Meet the CBM Team in Laos !

The CBM Team in Laos make sure the project work is carried out correctly and that those most in need can benefit from the services available.

For CBM Luxembourg, Laos is an important country to focus on for eye health care.  Although the country has made progress in healthcare in recent years, significant gaps remain, particularly in the area of preventable blindness. The last available study on avoidable blindness in Laos showed, among other things, that only around 54% of the required cataract operations could be carried out. There remains a great deficit in supply, especially in the registration and treatment of people with cataracts. The backlog has not been reduced and the COVID-19 pandemic has further diminished the availability of eye healthcare.

The CBM Laos project must therefore aim to expand eye healthcare through: the training of additional medical and paramedical staff, improved registration of affected people and more efficient allocation of resources at both the community and district levels.  This is why it is a core focus country for CBM.

Having a dedicated, highly skilled country team to work with in Laos is essential.  They know the culture, institutions and local language.  They bring expertise and advice on how to spend donations most effectively and how to keep our administrative costs low.

We asked the team in Laos to introduce themselves and tell us about their work and areas of focus.  In addition to the CBM office, we hear from Dr. Southida who was trained by CBM as a doctor of ophthalmology.  We also hear from Mrs. Souvanamethee, the deputy head of the Ophthalmological Centre of the Ministry of Health (NOC) in the capital, Vientiane.  She explains how CBM has made a difference to the centre and to people in Laos. Check out the video and meet the Laos Team.