The International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO) represents and serves their members which include national, regional and subspecialty ophthalmology societies throughout the world and is the only ophthalmology organization in official relations with the World Health Organization.
The roots of the International Council of Ophthalmology date back to 1857 when 150 ophthalmologists from 24 countries convened in Brussels, Belgium for the first World Ophthalmology Congress. Participants in the Congress founded the ICO in 1927 in Scheveningen, Holland.
Mission, Goals, Tasks
The ICO’s mission is to work with the world’s ophthalmology societies and other stakeholders to enhance ophthalmic education, improve access to the highest quality people-centred eye care, and to preserve and restore vision for the people of the world.