Featured, Health
By Anthony Isibor
FOR Bolanle, getting a pair of prescription glasses on October 1 was about more than being able to see clearly again.
It was the end of months of managing an eye problem she could neither treat nor afford to correct.
Bolanle, an inmate at the Female Section of the Nigerian Correctional Service facility in Kirikiri, Lagos, developed the problem after she was hit in the eye during a fight with another inmate.
A church later paid for her surgery, but after the procedure she discovered that she needed glasses. The ₦27,000 cost of the required pair, however, was beyond her reach.
So she managed her deteriorating eyesight for months, she told Realnews.
That changed on Thursday, when Gift Health Plus (GHP) an NGO used the Independence Day holiday to bring free eye checks and reading glasses to inmates at the facility.
Bolanle was among more than 120 inmates whose eyes were examined during the outreach. Those who needed glasses received both the glasses and a Package containing detergent, toothpaste tooth brush, and bathing soap. While others were given eye drops or referred for further care where necessary as well as the same package.
The outreach also brought relief materials including body scrubs, body oil, blankets and micronutrient supplements.
Some of those who received the eye glasses like 45-year-old Ifeoma, expressed her excitement at being able to return to something she valued deeply: reading.
Short-sighted and determined to continue educating herself despite being in a correctional facility, Ifeoma said her Bible was among the books she most wanted to read.
She was visibly pleased after she received the pair of glasses recommended by optometrist.
Like many of the inmates, she also received a relief package from GHP.
Elizabeth, 42, had experienced a gradual deterioration in her eyesight during her stay at the facility. Constant itching had also made the problem worse.
The eye examination led to the provision of medicated glasses and eye drops.
For Clara, an inmate from Ivory Coast, the outreach solved a problem that began when she was arrested. She had lost her glasses during the arrest and had been without them since.
Ajoke had been using glasses for at least two years before her pair broke while she was in the correctional facility. Unable to afford a replacement, she had been managing without them.
She said the new pair gave her the relief she had been waiting for.
For Grace, she had also been separated from her glasses after coming into the facility. She said the absence of the glasses had made her daily activities more difficult. The eye drops provided during the outreach helped with her eye discomfort, while she also received a relief package.
Another inmate, a Seventeen-year-old Favour was another recipient whose reaction captured the mood of the day. She was excited after her eyes were examined and she received reading glasses and other relief materials.
For Tosin, a 30-year-old nursing mother with a six-month-old baby, the intervention was simpler but equally welcome. She had a minor eye problem that required eye drops, which were provided free of charge. She also received a blanket and other relief items.
The excitement among the inmates extended beyond those who received glasses.
For many, the visit offered access to basic health and personal-care items that would otherwise have been difficult to obtain.
Speaking about the outreach, GHP founder, Dr Chamberlain Nwanne, said the organisation came with hundreds of glasses and reading glasses for inmates who needed them.
The organisation also donated micronutrient prenatal vitamins for onward distribution among inmates, as well as personal healthcare packages for the women.
The facility’s staff were not left out, with GHP providing personal-care items for them as well.
Nwanne said the Kirikiri facility was not new to the organisation.
“This is the third time we’re coming to this specific facility,” he said.
GHP’s wider correctional-facility outreach is carried out in partnership with the National Human Rights Commission, with visits organised on a rotating basis across the country.
The Kirikiri facility was selected partly because of its proximity to the organisation’s Lagos office, but Nwanne said the programme was designed to reach correctional facilities nationwide, depending on need and available resources.
For the women who received glasses, eye drops and other supplies on Independence Day, the significance was immediate and personal.
For Bolanle, it meant finally getting the glasses she had been unable to afford.
For Ifeoma, it meant seeing the words in the books she had continued to value.
For others, it was relief from eye irritation, a replacement for broken or lost glasses, or simply receiving basic personal-care items.
But across the facility, the intervention offered something common: the experience of being seen and cared for.
A.I
Oct. 2, 2026
Tags: Dr Chamberlain Nwanne Gift Health Plus
