Nine-year-old Jean has lost almost all of his sight. His condition started when he was very young and progressively got worse. After several visits to a local healer, his parents took him to a medical doctor in the city hospital. They were asked to pay $120 for a surgical procedure to restore Jean's sight. Unable to afford the fees, they abandoned his treatment.
Now, Jean is left with minimal vision in just one eye. Living in an urban community in Togo, he pulled out of school two years ago as he could no longer navigate his way without assistance. He is routinely harassed by other children and adults in the community for his disability.
"I often get disoriented and lost. People laugh at me and guide me in the wrong direction. There have been instances where people have placed objects in my path to make me fall," he says.