…As VCDF, FRSC screen 105, detect 11 eye conditions
By Kingsley Samuel
Sterling Oil Exploration and Energy Production Company Limited, SEEPCO, has sponsored an integrated eye screening and road safety outreach for long-distance drivers and other residents in Kwale, Delta State, as part of efforts to promote public health and safer roads across Nigeria.
The initiative, implemented through Vcare for Development Foundation, VCDF, in partnership with the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, RS 5.26 Kwale Unit Command, was flagged off on Monday, August 31, 2026, at the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, Park in Kwale.
The outreach brought together FRSC officials, Red Cross volunteers, transport union leaders and community representatives, with emphasis on the importance of good vision among commercial and long-distance drivers.
According to the organisers, the programme was designed to address the public health and road safety challenges associated with road traffic crashes, particularly among drivers whose work requires long hours on the road.
VCDF said regular eye screening was critical for drivers, noting that undetected vision problems could impair their ability to recognise hazards and respond appropriately while driving.
A total of 105 people, comprising long-distance drivers, community members and FRSC personnel, were screened during the exercise.
The screening identified three cases of cataract and eight cases of pterygium, while 28 participants received prescription glasses and 27 others were given medications.
The foundation said participants diagnosed with cataract or pterygium would be managed through its VCDF-supported Cataract Surgery Unit, CSU.
The intervention is an extension of VCDF’s Sustainable Primary Eye Care Services, SPECS, programme, which has been sponsored by Sterling Oil since 2023.
Speaking on the initiative, VCDF said the partnership with Sterling Oil and FRSC underscored the importance of combining healthcare interventions with road safety awareness.
The foundation said: “The outreach is a strategic opportunity to promote eye health awareness and encourage drivers to seek regular vision screening to avoid preventable blindness and road hazards.”
It added that the collaboration demonstrated how corporate social responsibility investments could be deployed to address health and safety challenges at the community level.
According to VCDF, “Since 2023, 1,926 people have been screened and over 1,500 successful cataract and pterygium surgeries have been conducted” under the SPECS programme.
The foundation also said its wider integrated health interventions had reached 26,959 lives since inception, while more than 80,683 lives had been touched through high-impact interventions implemented across Akwa Ibom, Delta and Lagos states.
Beyond medical services, VCDF provided branded banners and information, education and communication, IEC, flyers for community sensitisation, as well as branded T-shirts, wristbands and writing pens as part of the outreach.
The materials, it said, were intended to reinforce public awareness and demonstrate the commitment of Sterling Oil and VCDF to the safety and development of communities.
VCDF said the intervention was particularly significant given the risks faced by long-distance drivers, who spend extended periods behind the wheel and may be vulnerable to undiagnosed eye conditions.
The foundation said: “VCDF will continue to leverage Sterling Oil’s corporate social responsibility investments to work with government, partners and relevant institutions for the best public health outcomes across Nigerian communities.”
The organisation further reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening partnerships that improve access to preventive healthcare while supporting safer and healthier communities.
The collaboration with FRSC and transport stakeholders in Kwale, it said, reflected the foundation’s broader approach of taking essential health services and awareness programmes closer to communities and groups most likely to benefit from them.
