World Sight Day is an annual day of awareness
to focus global attention on blindness, visual impairment and rehabilitation of
the visually impaired held on the second Thursday in October.World Sight Day is
observed around the world by all partners involved in preventing visual
impairment or restoring sight. It is also the main advocacy event for the
prevention of blindness and for "Vision 2020: The Right to Sight", a
global effort to prevent blindness created by WHO and the International Agency for
the Prevention of Blindness. World Sight Day 2012Thursday,
October 11, 2012World Sight Day 2013
Thursday, October 10, 2013 The World
Health Organization (WHO), which is the UN’s directing and coordinating
authority for health, and the International Agency for the Prevention of
Blindness (IAPB) are actively involved in coordinating events and activities
for World Sight Day. Associations such as Lions Clubs International have also
been actively involved in promoting the day on an annual basis for many
years.Many communities, associations, and non-government organizations work
together with WHO and IAPB to promote the day for the following purposes:
§ To
raise public awareness of blindness and vision impairment as major
international public health issues.
§ To
influence governments, particularly health ministers, to participate in and
designate funds for national blindness prevention programs.
§ To
educate target audiences about blindness prevention, about VISION 2020 and its
activities, and to generate support for VISION 2020 program activities.
Some people plant trees to commemorate World Sight Day
and while others submit a photo for an international photo montage that focuses
on the theme of blindness. Other activities include taking part in
awareness-raising walks or distributing and displaying posters, bookmarks,
booklets and other forms of information the raise awareness about preventable
blindness.The world's population is ageing and people are living longer but
blindness from chronic conditions is also rising, according to WHO. About 80
percent of the world's 45 million blind people are aged over 50 years. About 90
percent of blind people live in low-income countries, where older people,
especially older women, face barriers to getting the necessary eye health care.
Yet, many age-related conditions leading to blindness – such as cataract,
refractive error and glaucoma – can be easily and cheaply treated or cured.
Timely intervention can often delay or reduce their effects on vision.
Lions Clubs International partnered with blindness
prevention organizations worldwide to commemorate the first World Sight Day on
October 8, 1998. This event was later integrated into VISION 2020, a global
initiative that the IAPB coordinates. This initiative is a joint program
between WHO and the IAPB. It involves non-government organizations, and
professional associations, as well as eye care institutions and corporations.
Prof. John Kurakar
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