Baku, April 30 (AZERTAC). Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the State Committee for Refugee and IDP Affairs Ali Hasanov has met President of Japanese Fuji Optical company, winner of the 2006 Nansen Refugee Award by UNHCR for his outstanding service to refugees, well-known optometrist Akio Kanai as the company completed its optometric services to IDPs and refugees as well as vulnerable people in Azerbaijan for 2014.

Deputy Premier Hasanov thanked Dr. Kanai for the Japanese company’s free of charge optometric services to IDPs and refugees as well as vulnerable people in Azerbaijan. He hailed Fuji Optical`s “10 year long noble mission” as a sign of “excellent bilateral ties between the Azerbaijani and Japanese governments.

He highlighted Azerbaijan`s development under President Ilham Aliyev, saying the country has dramatically improved its international image and strengthened its international position.

Mr. Hasanov spoke of the Armenian military aggression against Azerbaijan, expressing regret that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict had not yet been solved.

Dr. Kanai hailed reconstruction work carried out in Azerbaijan and the government`s efforts to ensure favourable conditions for refugees and IDPs.

He also lauded the assistance of the Azerbaijani government, the Republican Commission on International Humanitarian Aid and local executives in carrying out his mission.

Initiated and organized by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) with the support of the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan, representatives of the Japanese Fuji Optical company led by the President of the company Akio Kanai have been visiting Azerbaijan every year to render optometric service to IDPs and refugees, as well as vulnerable people in the country since 2005.

The aim of the humanitarian aid holding with the organizational support of the UNHCR’s Azerbaijan Office was to provide IDPs and refugees, as well as vulnerable people in the country with optometric service.

More than 1.8 million USD has been spent by Fuji Optical to accomplish its humanitarian activity in Azerbaijan during the last ten years since 2005. About 39 thousand pairs of high quality optic eyeglasses and other items have been brought to the country as in-kind donation to the UNHCR operations in Azerbaijan. In total, more than 18 thousand refugees, IDPs and other vulnerable people have benefited from the free of charge vision screening services.

Dr Kanai and his team of 6 optometrists have already visited Imishli, Beylagan and Fuzuli regions of the country from April 22-26, and the UNHCR’s Refugee Women and Youth Centre in Baku on April 28 for eye screening and conducting eye glasses distribution to persons of concern to UNHCR, e.g. refugees, internally displaced persons and other vulnerable people this year.

This year, Fuji Optical has handed out more than 2,000 pairs of eye-glasses in Azerbaijan and benefited for free of charge about 2400 IDPs, refugees and other vulnerable people in the country with eye screening service.