The GCC countries have congratulated the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by the Ministry of Health and His Highness the Minister of Health Dr. Hamad bin Abdullah Al-Mane, on the occasion of receiving two blindness prevention awards, the Global Participation Award and the Regional Achievement Award, which were offered to the Kingdom in acknowledgement of the pioneering role carried out by the Saudi Ministry of Health during the past years in the field of blindness prevention, said the Director General of the Executive Office of the GCC Council of Ministers of Health Dr Tawfeeq Ahmed Khoja, who has returned recently to the Kingdom after participating in the eighth meeting of the General Assembly of the International Agency for Preventing Blindness (IAPB), during which the Minister of Health received the two rewards.
Visual disabilities in the Eastern Mediterranean region have drawn great attention recently due to presence of millions of affected cases in the region. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been encouraged to undertake a leading role in blindness prevention due to the fact that medical intervention in this regard is highly successful and cost effective.
Dr. Khoja greatly valued the efforts exerted by the Chairman of IAPB Eastern Mediterranean Office HRH Prince Abdul Aziz bin Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz in this regard, notifying that such efforts are consistent with the Kingdom's noble aim of providing support to all works directed towards realizing welfare for mankind.