BRI & HK EP4 | Clearing the fog: GX Foundation helps numerous Cambodian cataract patients restore sight

However, there are many cataract patients living in underdeveloped areas of the world who are unable to receive timely surgical treatment, and Cambodia is one of the countries with a serious backlog of cataract cases.

Cambodia is located in the tropical zone, where high temperatures and strong ultraviolet rays throughout the year cause a high incidence of cataract and other eye diseases. There is a backlog of more than 80,000 cataract cases in the country, with the number increasing by 20,000 every year.

Such cataract patients in Prey Veng Province, however, finally had a chance to turn their lives around after an NGO from Hong Kong, a medical team from mainland China, and two made-in-China mobile surgical vans arrived in the Southern Cambodian province, hoping to help local patients regain their sight through free surgeries. And all this was made possible by the GX Foundation, a non-profit Chinese charitable organization from Hong Kong.

GX Foundation's CEO,  Emily Chan, said that the charity organization, together with a nine-member medical aid team from Guangxi, China, has set up the goal of completing about 10,000 surgeries in two to three years to eliminate the backlog of cataracts in Prey Veng province.

With the limited conditions in Prey Veng Province, the success of these surgeries was made possible by the use of two ophthalmic surgical centers made in Guangdong Province. The facilities inside, including surgical instruments and various medical equipment, are all up-to-date and meet international standards.

Chan said that the Foundation hopes to bring the related technology to underprivileged countries along the "Belt and Road" to help them improve their medical standards.

Leung Chun-ying, Chairman of the GX Foundation and Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said that apart from Cambodia, the Foundation has also provided assistance in Laos, Djibouti, Mauritania and Senegal.

Spearheaded by CY Leung in 2018, GX Foundation is a non-profit Chinese charitable organization organized in Hong Kong with state-level power to engage in international humanitarian medical aid work.

Leung pointed out that Hong Kong has a long and mature system of public interest groups, non-governmental organizations and charities, and the Foundation was set up in the city in the hope of making good use of these advantages and making it easier to carry out work in this area.

This year also marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Cambodia. China's long-standing cooperation with and aid to Cambodia in the field of health and medical care has gained widespread approval from local communities.