International Portfolio Reports

Moorfields Lions Korle Bu Trust, Chairman - PCC Stewart Sherman-Kahn

Our Eye Centre

Korle Bu LogoThe Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) is one of the largest such facilities in the whole of the West Africa region. However, before the Lions International Eye Centre (LIEC) was built, KBTH's Ophthalmic Department was only able to treat around 75 patients per day. Now that the LIEC is built and equipped, they can treat up to 300 patients per day. This is a massive improvement, but this is only possible if the medical teams have the necessary expertise. Therefore, our training courses now being run are a vital component in the development of the capacity and standards necessary to improve significantly the sight services available.

Work on the development of courses is progressing very well. Courses in Small Incision Cataract Surgery, Diabetic Retinopathy, Glaucoma and Paediatric Cataract are now fully up and running, being organised almost entirely by our own local courses manager based in Accra and staffed entirely by West African ophthalmologists whom we have trained as faculty members. Oculoplastics and Sickle Cell Retinopathy courses are "in the pipeline" and should come on stream later this year or early next year.

We also have an online course introducing suitably trained medical personnel to the speciality of ophthalmic surgery, and this has been taken by around 400 students so far. This course is now in the curriculum for fellowship of the West African College of Surgeons (WACS).

In addition, we have trained over 200 nurses and other staff in modern techniques in ophthalmic support services, patient flows, patient record keeping, etc.

We can estimate with confidence that our work has led to well over 250,000 sight-saving treatments that would not otherwise have been undertaken. These are all procedures that were unavailable in West Africa before our courses started, and they are being carried out on patients who could not afford to go abroad for treatment. As can be seen, MD105's VERY OWN SIGHT PROJECT at Korle Bu, Ghana, is having a massive impact on preventable blindness in the whole of the West Africa region.

We continue towards our aim to provide higher ophthalmic surgical training

IN West Africa, BY West Africa, FOR West Africa.

The Future Looks Great

Be in no doubt, the work we Lions are now doing, in partnership with others, is providing West Africa with sight services of a quality and quantity that could not have been envisaged before, and we are changing huge numbers of lives for the better.

Our plan is to build up the number of courses to six per year, thus providing direct specialist training to between 20 and 24 ophthalmologists annually. All our courses now contain a "train the trainer" element, so that the skills can be passed onto many others. They also now contain a clinical management element, which is designed to improve all the additional facilities, such as nursing, patient management, etc. that are needed to maximise the benefits of the surgical skills we teach.

A vital element in projects such as ours is sustainability. We now have our own courses manager in Accra, who makes almost all of the arrangements necessary for each course. We have also trained a significant number of African trainers, so that all regular courses are "manned" by West African facilitators. To move towards true sustainability, we must seek local West African sources of finance. Ideas of how this can be done are being considered.

MD105 Very Own Sight Project

In West Africa, there are around 2.6 million people known to be blind, but the actual total could be twice that figure. Whilst up to 90% of this blindness could be cured or prevented, sight services available in the region have historically been at levels only around 20% of those needed to tackle the problem. So, the most important part of our MD105 project is to provide training for ophthalmic surgeons and their teams. This training project is now showing very positive results, leading to much improve sight services throughout the region, both in terms of quality and quantity.

We Lions of MD105 continue to work with Moorfields Eye Hospital, University College London, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH), West African College of Surgeons (WACS) and others to run training courses at the Lions International Eye Centre (LIEC) which we have built and equipped at Ghana's main teaching hospital in Accra. The centre provides a resource for the diagnosis, management and treatment of all eye diseases, whilst enabling specialists from across West Africa to train in a safe and high-volume surgery unit. Once trained, ophthalmologists not only put their skills to use in their place of work in West Africa but also pass on their knowledge and skills to colleagues, disseminating expertise and helping to eliminate preventable blindness from cataract, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and many other conditions across the region.

Without your continued support, we would not have been able to achieve this. On behalf of everyone involved in the project, thank you.

Your Help Is Needed

I am sure you will agree that our project is desperately needed, and that now it is really coming to fruition. However, it will take another three to five years to reach the level of sustainability towards which we strive. In the meantime, your continued support is vital to gain the benefits of all the hard work and resources which we Lions have committed in the past.

We should be delighted If you would like to sponsor a whole course at £12,500, or an individual student at £2,500. But donations of any size are important to us, however small.

Please send your donations to your District Charities Treasurer clearly marked "Korle Bu".

A Huge Thank You

Particular thanks much go to Howard Lee for all his work on this project over the years.

Many thanks to all our Trustees for their hard work. This includes Howard Lee, Chris Iles, Max Mongia and Andy Pemberton, along with Consultant Ophthalmologists Ian Murdoch MBE, Evie Mensah, Raj Das Baumik, Hannah Faal (Nigeria) and Adetunji Adenekan (Nigeria)

On behalf of everyone involved in the project, and on behalf of the many thousands of people in West Africa who are benefitting from our work, I thank you again for your kind and loyal support in the past, and I would ask you to continue that support for the next few years.

Stewart Sherman-Kahn

Chairperson, Moorfields Lions Korle Bu Trust

23 April 2026


LCIF - PCC Stewart Sherman-Kahn

LCIF-logoBefore I continue to my Report, I must acknowledge my predecessor David Pope for his work in this role from 2022 - 2025

Having been appointed to this role in July 2025 the hard work started.

Along with many of the MD105 District Coordinator's we attended the European LCIF Training weekend in September 2025 in Lisbon Portugal. A wonderful weekend of learning and sharing best practice.

In February 2026 we had a visit from the LCIF Chairperson IPIP Fabricio Oliviera, his partner in service Amariles Martin and PID Elisabeth Haderer.

Visits to LIBRA in London and Baby Lifeline in Solihull were undertaken and 2 dinners were held to celebrate and recognise all that is done to support LCIF in MD105. Thanks to the Teams in District 105A and 105CW for organising two amazing events. Thanks must also go to CC Stu and Brigitte for all their support in making this visit such a success.

Supporting LCIF is something that is always in the heart of the Lions of MD105. This is supported by your team. Each District has a Coordinator and this year they have been working so hard to share information with you and to assist you when you need it.

My thanks go to these amazing Lions:-

District A - Karanjeet Assan

District CE – Colin Talbot  

District CN – Tony Clarkson  

District CW – Stewart Sherman-Kahn  

District N – Ron Lindsey  

District SC – Laura Roberts  

District SE – Rod Weale  

District SW – Emma Burnard  

WORLD IN NEED

The world needs LCIF more than ever.

Appeals have been made to support Emergency Relief in Jamaica, Punjab, Gaza and Palestine and South America.

As always, YOU the Lions of MD105 have responded and have sent funds to LCIF knowing that it will be put to good use. YOU have donated (as of 9 April 2026)

$400,287 (£294,525)


Thank you all for your continued support for OUR Foundation.

What is next…

WINTER IN UKRAINE 4

This project is just being launched to fund much needed Generators in Ukraine. More information will follow from your District Coordinator.

BABY LIFELINE

This project is new and is one of ours. A project from MD105 backed with a Grant from LCIF. The first major MD Grant from LCIP since 2020.

VISION CAMERAS

4 Districts have been successful in obtaining Grants to fund Vision Screening in MD105 with more to come. Money coming from LCIF into MD105 to enable us to change the lives of many.

THANK YOU – YOU ARE AMAZING


Refugee Officer - PCC Lion Kavaljit Dev

The UK is seeing record numbers of people asking for asylum, with about 100,000 people applying each year. Currently, over 220,000 people are in the system, many waiting a long time for decisions.

Each year, around 55,000 people are granted refugee status, and in total there are about 540,000 refugees living in the UK.

In addition to asylum seekers, the UK has welcomed people through special programmes:

Many Ukrainians who have come to the UK face ongoing challenges as they rebuild their lives. These include:

These challenges are shared by many refugees across the UK.

In the British Isles, Lions Clubs are already supporting refugees and displaced people by:

Globally, through our Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF), Lions provide:

Fellow Lions, the number of refugees in the UK is likely to grow because of ongoing wars, global instability, and climate change, which are forcing more people to leave their homes. The UK is seen as a safe and stable country, so many seek protection here.

As the refugee crisis grows, the needs and support required will also increase and I encourage all Lions clubs in the UK to explore the various ways they can support refugees and displaced persons. Working with charities and organisations already involved in this area of service is a good way forward.

Together, we can bring hope and relief to those in need and demonstrate the power of compassionate service.

Lions don't just respond to need — we help people rebuild their future.