Fellowships

Kiroshi Fellowships

Each year twelve eye surgeons and low vision specialists from low- and middle-income countries spend a year working under supervision at a partner hospital in Tokyo, Nairobi or Lalitpur, then go home. Almost all of them stay home.

The fellowship

Places: Twelve a year, two of them in low vision rehabilitation
Length: Twelve months, from April
Covered: Salary at the host hospital’s rate, travel, housing, language training and a return visit by a mentor after the fellowship
Next call: Closes 12 February 2027, for the 2027 to 2028 cohort
Since: 1978. The Foundation’s first twelve grants were scholarships of this kind.

Fellows work as part of a surgical or rehabilitation team, not as observers. A cataract surgery fellow will typically perform more than 1,500 operations under supervision during the year. Each fellow returns home with a mentor who visits in the following year, and with a commitment from their home institution, made before the fellowship begins, to a post that uses what they learned.

Of the 437 fellows since 1978 whose whereabouts we know, 91% work in their home country. Dr Rahel Tesfaye, who now sits on our board, was a fellow in 2004.

Fellows

The 2026 to 2027 cohort

Twelve fellows from seven countries began in April 2026 and were announced, with their consent, at the end of their first quarter.

Kiroshi Fellows, April 2026 to March 2027
Fellow	Home country	Specialty	Host city
Dr Grace Nanyonga	Uganda	Paediatric cataract surgery	Nairobi
Dr Sabin Adhikari	Nepal	Vitreoretinal surgery	Tokyo
Dr Le Thi Hoa	Viet Nam	Glaucoma	Tokyo
Dr Abebe Girma	Ethiopia	Cataract surgery	Nairobi
Nusrat Jahan	Bangladesh	Low vision rehabilitation	Lalitpur
Dr Peter Mwakalinga	Tanzania	Corneal surgery and eye banking	Lalitpur
Dr Jocelyn Ramos	Philippines	Paediatric ophthalmology	Tokyo
Dr Kiran Rai	Nepal	Cataract surgery	Nairobi
Dr Faith Wambui	Kenya	Vitreoretinal surgery	Tokyo
Moses Lokiru	Kenya	Low vision rehabilitation	Tokyo
Dr Rashedul Karim	Bangladesh	Corneal surgery	Lalitpur
Dr Tigist Haile	Ethiopia	Paediatric cataract surgery	Nairobi

The 2025 to 2026 cohort

Kiroshi Fellows, April 2025 to March 2026
Fellow	Home country	Specialty	Host city
Dr Amina Juma	Tanzania	Paediatric cataract surgery	Nairobi
Dr Bikash Thapa	Nepal	Vitreoretinal surgery	Tokyo
Dr Nguyen Thi Lan	Viet Nam	Corneal surgery and eye banking	Lalitpur
Dr Samuel Okello	Uganda	Cataract surgery	Nairobi
Dr Farzana Akter	Bangladesh	Paediatric ophthalmology	Tokyo
Joseph Mwita	Kenya	Low vision rehabilitation	Tokyo
Dr Tsegaye Bekele	Ethiopia	Corneal surgery	Lalitpur
Dr Maria Santos	Philippines	Glaucoma	Tokyo
Dr Rupa Gurung	Nepal	Cataract surgery	Nairobi
Hellen Achieng	Kenya	Low vision rehabilitation	Lalitpur
Dr Dao Van Minh	Viet Nam	Vitreoretinal surgery	Tokyo
Dr Mekdes Alemu	Ethiopia	Paediatric cataract surgery	Nairobi

All twelve of last year’s fellows have returned to posts in their home countries.

Applying

You can apply if you are a qualified ophthalmologist, ophthalmic clinical officer, optometrist or rehabilitation worker employed in a low- or middle-income country, with at least two years of practice and the support of your employer. Applications are in English. Shortlisted applicants are interviewed by video by a panel that includes a former fellow.

The 2027 call closes on 12 February 2027. Write to grants@kiroshi.org with “Fellowship 2027” in the subject line for the application pack.