It is therefore the primary duty of the Board to determine the quality of training (in both professions) to guarantee sufficient knowledge and skill for practice. This the Board does through accreditation and re-accreditation of training Institutions offering Optometry and Dispensing Opticianry as the case may be. The Board also ensures that practitioners conduct themselves in a way and manner that would command respect and confidence from members of the public. The Nigerian law defines Optometry simply as the art and science of vision care. The scope of practice includes:

• eye examinations to determine refractive errors and other departures from the optimally healthy and visually efficient eye;
• correction of refractive errors using spectacles, contact lenses, low vision aids and other devices;
• correction of errors of binocularity by means of vision training (orthoptics);
• diagnosis and management of minor ocular infections which do not pose a threat to the integrity of the ocular or visual system; and
• ocular first aid;

DISPENSING OPTICIANRY is defined as the art and skill of fabricating, fitting and dispensing of optical aids and eye wears. The Dispensing Opticians fits lenses into spectacular frames using prescriptions from the Optometrist. They are empowered by the law to manufacture lenses and other vision aids.