• Home Page
• Who We Are
• What We Do
• Support Us
• Press Office
• Our Successes
• Donate Now

Pakistan leads the way in fight against blindness

A survey co-funded by Sightsavers International, one of the UK’s leading blindness charities, indicates that the number of people who are blind in Pakistan has fallen considerably since the country’s last national survey in 1987.  The prevalence of blindness is now thought to be 1%, down from 1.78%.

The largest of its kind to take place in Pakistan, and one of the most extensive worldwide, the Pakistan National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey examined 16,600 adults and some 6000 children to establish the causes of blindness and low vision in the country.  The study means that Pakistan is one of the few countries to have national data on blindness and low vision which is crucial for good health planning and policy.

Other key findings show that there are 1.5 million people in Pakistan who are blind; two thirds are women.  Cataract is the main cause of blindness followed by corneal scarring.  About 80% of all cases are preventable.  The results provide an important way forward for the government of Pakistan in its efforts to develop prevention strategies.

For a developing country like Pakistan, with a population of over 150 million people, providing services for different disabilities poses a major problem.  The survey highlighted the uneven distribution of blindness across the regions.  This is due to many of the resources being concentrated in the urban areas while most of Pakistan’s population is rural and, in some parts, sparsely dispersed.

Sightsavers has acted as a driving force behind the survey in order to create a picture of blindness in a country whose government has begun to prioritise this area of healthcare, in recognition of its impact on the economy. 

According to Sightsavers’ Pakistan country representative, Dr Haroon Awan: “Blindness seriously reduces a child’s chances of going to school and an adult’s of finding employment, and therefore increases the likelihood of poverty.”

The government of Pakistan has subsequently recognized the severity of the situation and allocated £25 million (2.7 billion rupees) towards a five year national plan to prevent blindness in more than two million individuals, restore sight to two million others and useful sight to 15,000 children. 
The government initiative supports the World Health Assembly resolution on the eradication of blindness.  The resolution commits member countries to develop national VISION 2020 plans in an effort to eliminate avoidable blindness by the year 2020.  Through its actions, the Pakistan government is one of the first to recognise the importance of the prevention and control of blindness as a way of alleviating poverty.

“This survey and the government’s commitment marks a new era for Pakistan,“ said Dr Awan, “one where the support of people with disabilities is given much greater priority.  What we are lacking now are the healthcare personnel to address the problem if we are to make any serious headway in tackling the root of poverty.” 

A cataract operation to restore sight to an adult costs just £17 (£27 for a child) and only takes 20 minutes to perform.  Donations to assist Sightsavers’ work in Pakistan to combat blindness and secure equal rights for people who are blind and visually impaired can be made using the 24-hour donation line (0800 089 2020) or via www.sightsavers.org

Ends

 

For further press information, case studies or photographs of Sightsavers’ work in Pakistan, please contact Ann Noon on 01444 446728, anoon@sightsavers.org   For media enquiries out of hours, please call 07775 928253.

Notes to editors:

1. Dr Haroon Awan, Sightsavers’ Pakistan country representative, is in the UK from 8-16 June and available for interview.
2. The Pakistan National Blindness and Low Vision Survey was undertaken by the Pakistan Institute of Community Ophthalmology in conjunction with the International Centre for Eye Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
3. Sightsavers International is a registered UK charity (number 207544) that works in more than 30 developing countries to prevent blindness, restore sight and improve life for those who will never see.
4. There are 37 million blind people in the world; 75% of all blindness can be prevented or cured.
5. Since 1950, Sightsavers has restored sight to 5.65 million people and treated more than 100 million more.

• © Sightsavers International. Registered charity number 207544.   |   
• Privacy   |  
• Sitemap

• Design by Unified Solutions.