As part of activities marking the 2024 World Sight Day, the federal government has renewed its commitment to tackling vision impairment and blindness among children in Nigeria.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ forum in Abuja, themed “Love Your Eyes Kids”, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, underscored the government’s dedication to improving eye care for children. Represented by the Director of Special Projects, Dr. Charles Nzelu, Pate highlighted the alarming global statistics of untreated vision conditions in children, noting that these impairments negatively affect their education and future prospects.
“The theme of this year’s campaign emphasizes our collective responsibility to ensure that every child has the right to clear and precise vision,” Dr. Nzelu said, reiterating the importance of prioritizing children’s eye health. He added that enhancing vision care is crucial to achieving key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including quality education, poverty reduction, and economic growth.
Prof. Pate noted that the federal government has initiated several programs aimed at increasing access to vision care. Among these efforts is the integration of Primary Eye Care (PEC) into the country’s Primary Health Care (PHC) system to ensure coverage in rural areas. He also cited the Effective Spectacular Coverage Initiative Nigeria (ESCIN) Jigibola 2.0, a recently launched program designed to further expand access to quality eye care.
Highlighting the need for partnerships, Pate stressed the importance of collaboration between various ministries, the private sector, and the media to raise awareness and support sustainable efforts to address childhood vision challenges.
The minister called on parents, caregivers, and teachers to actively participate in these initiatives, pointing out that an estimated 450 million children globally suffer from vision conditions, with 90 million of them experiencing some form of vision loss.
Also speaking at the event, the National Coordinator of the Eye Health Programme, Dr. Oteri Okolo, representing the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Kachallum Daju, emphasized that World Sight Day serves as a critical platform to bring attention to the growing issue of childhood vision impairment. Okolo added that the event encourages efforts toward finding effective solutions for the challenges faced by children with vision problems.
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