Luwero District holds a unique place in Uganda’s history. The wider Luwero Triangle was profoundly affected by the five-year bush war of the 1980s, which disrupted families, destroyed livelihoods, weakened household economies and left deep social and economic scars. Many rural communities continued to experience challenges in accessing essential social and health services. Against this historical background, The Seeing Eyes deliberately chose Luwero as a springboard for diving deep into underserved communities, taking eye care beyond conventional health facilities and reaching people where they lived, studied, worshipped and worked. The outreach programme established links with health facilities including Luwero Health Centre IV, Kalagala Health Centre IV, St. Mary Kasaala Health Centre IV, Hope Health Centre IV, Bombo Health Centre III, Butuntumula Health Centre III, Kamira Health Centre III, Zirobwe Health Centre III, Bukalasa Health Centre III and other health facilities across the district. These facilities provided important points for identifying patients requiring further assessment, treatment or referral and demonstrated the importance of community-based approaches to healthcare.

Schools were an important entry point for reaching children and young people. Eye screening activities were conducted in primary and secondary schools, including St. Theresa Boys’ Primary School, Masooli Primary School, Luwero Primary School, Kasana Primary School, St. Mary’s Primary School, Wobulenzi Town Primary School, St. John’s Secondary School Nandere, Kasana Secondary School, Luwero High School, Katikamu Secondary School, St. Mary’s Secondary School Namaliga, Ssaku Secondary School, Ndejje High School, Luwero Central Secondary School, Nalinya Lwantalé Girls’ School, Luwero Muslim Secondary School and other schools across the district. The screenings provided an opportunity to identify children with previously undetected refractive errors and other eye conditions that could interfere with learning. Students with myopia, hypermetropia, astigmatism and other visual difficulties were identified and appropriately managed or referred. Those requiring vision correction were provided with spectacles, helping them see the classroom board, read their books, participate more effectively in lessons and improve their educational experience.

Churches and faith-based communities formed another important platform for the outreach. The Seeing Eyes reached congregants through Church of Uganda, Catholic and Pentecostal/Born-Again churches, including communities around Our Lady of Grace Nandere Parish, Kasana-Luweero Diocese, Walyoba Church of Uganda and other churches in Luwero, Wobulenzi, Bombo, Zirobwe, Bamunanika and surrounding communities. Mosques and Muslim communities were equally important in ensuring that the outreach was inclusive. Communities associated with Luwube Muslim Secondary School, Khadija Girls Islamic Secondary School and other mosques and Islamic centres provided opportunities to reach Muslim congregants with eye health information, screening and services. Within churches and mosques, particular attention was given to presbyopia, which affected many adults and older congregants. Reading spectacles were provided to those who needed them, enabling beneficiaries to read the Bible, Qur’an and other religious materials more comfortably while improving their ability to perform everyday near-vision tasks. The outreach also identified and managed common eye conditions, including allergies and infections, which were treated on site where appropriate. Patients with cataracts and other potentially sight-threatening conditions were identified and linked to specialized care, with those requiring cataract surgery referred through established surgical pathways, including collaboration with Mulago National Referral Hospital where necessary.

A major component of the Luwero intervention was intensive community health education. Communities were educated about proper eye and face hygiene, early recognition of eye problems, the importance of seeking professional eye care and the dangers of putting traditional or unverified medicines into the eyes. Strong emphasis was also placed on avoiding self-medication and seeking qualified medical attention whenever eye symptoms developed. The impact of the Luwero programme was therefore wide and deep. The intervention went beyond treating individual eye conditions by bringing eye care into communities that had historically experienced significant social and economic disruption, reaching children through schools, adults and older people through churches and mosques, providing spectacles to people who had struggled to see clearly, identifying cataract patients who required surgery, treating common eye infections and allergies, and strengthening community knowledge about preventing avoidable blindness. Luwero became more than just another outreach location; it became a strategic springboard for The Seeing Eyes to demonstrate that quality eye care can be taken deep into underserved communities regardless of historical circumstances, economic status, geographical location or religious affiliation. Through this approach, The Seeing Eyes contributed to restoring sight, improving children’s educational opportunities, enhancing the ability of adults and older people to read and participate in worship, preventing avoidable visual impairment and bringing renewed hope to communities. The Luwero experience reinforced the organization’s commitment to taking eye care to the last mile and ensuring that no person is left behind because of poverty, distance or limited access to specialized services.