Coordinating Minister for Health and Social Welfare Muhammad Pate has said that protecting children from visual impairment is crucial to the national goal of ensuring quality health for children.
According to him, there is a need to expand access to comprehensive eye care and integrate eye health into existing health systems to address visual impairment among children in Nigeria.
He said this on Thursday at a stakeholders meeting in Abuja, as Nigeria joined the global effort to commemorate World Sight Day 2024, the theme of which is: “Love your eyes, children.”
World Sight Day, celebrated on the second Thursday of October each year, is a global initiative aimed at raising awareness about blindness and visual impairment.
It was first launched in 2000 as part of the Lions Club International Foundation's “Sight First Campaign.”
For the year 2024, World Sight Day focuses on increasing public attention on eye care in young people and “inspiring children around the world to love their eyes.”
Minister speaks
Speaking on this, Mr. Pate, represented by the Ministry’s Director of Special Projects, Charles Nzelu, said the Nigerian government is dedicated to addressing visual impairment and blindness in Nigerian children.
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He noted that millions of children around the world suffer from untreated vision problems, which hinders their education and future potential.
He also stated that this year's campaign theme highlights the need for collaboration and partnership to ensure that “every child deserves to see the world clearly and accurately.”
Nzelu said vision is a critical part of a child's overall health and intellectual development.
“Our collective action is necessary to improve awareness and advocacy, expand access to comprehensive eye care, integrate eye health into health care systems, and foster innovative solutions to increase access,” he said.
Data on children with visual disabilities.
According to data published by the WHO in 2020, around 19 million children under the age of 15 have visual impairment and around 1.4 million of them suffer from irreversible blindness.
In most cases, the conditions were preventable.
According to this study, the main cause of blindness in this age group is cataracts.
Other leading causes are vitamin A deficiency and neonatal infections, and congenital and developmental glaucoma.
The study also listed uncorrected refractive errors that can generally be prevented by early use of corrective glasses.
Government efforts
In this regard, the minister said that the government, through the integration of Primary Vision Care (PEC) into Primary Health Care (PHC), is working to improve access to vision care throughout the country. country.
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He said this is to ensure access to eye care services at the grassroots level, noting that “the Effective Spectacular Coverage Initiative of Nigeria (ESCIN) Jigibola 2.0 has been officially launched in partnership with other line ministries such as education, transportation, private sector and media to achieve a sustainable vision. goals.”
He advised parents, caregivers and teachers to identify with the initiative that is expected to impact millions of children living with some type of visual problem.