VISION 2020

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VISION 2020
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WHAT?

• Global initiative for the elimination of
  avoidable blindness, launched jointly by the
  World Health Organization (WHO) and the
  International Agency for the Prevention of
  Blindness (IAPB) in 1999 with an international
  membership of NGOs, professional associations,
  eye care institutions and corporations.
• VISION 2020 member organisations are working
  together to eliminate avoidable blindness, to
  give everyone in the world the Right to Sight.

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WHY?? SCENARIO

• 161 million people are visually impaired
• 37 million blind,124 million low vision(2002 WHO
  refractive error not included)
• 314 million people are visually impaired
• 45 million blind (2006 WHO included visual
  impairment due to uncorrected refractive errors)
• Every year 1-2 million people go blind
• One person goes blind every 5 seconds and One
  child goes blind every minute
• Without proper interventions 76 million people
  could be blind by year 2020
• Yet 75 of blindness is avoidable

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AVOIDABLE BLINDNESS

• Defined as blindness which could be either
  treated or prevented by known, cost-effective
  methods.
• VISION 2020 seeks to address the main causes of
  avoidable blindness, in order to have the
  greatest possible impact on vision loss worldwide
  
• Cataract
• Trachoma
• Onchocerciasis
• Childhood blindness
• Refractive error
• Low vision
• Glaucoma
• Diabetic retinopathy

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VISION

• A world in which no one is needlessly blind and
  where those with unavoidable vision loss can
  achieve their full potential.
• eliminate the main causes of avoidable blindness
  by the year 2020
• to prevent the projected doubling of avoidable
  visual impairment between 1990 and 2020.
• intends to strengthen national health-care
  systems and facilitate national
  capacity-building.

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HOW???

• Facilitating the planning, development and
  implementation of sustainable national eye care
  programmes based on the 3 core strategies
• 1. disease control,
• 2. human resource development and
• 3. infrastructure and technology,
• incorporating the principles of primary health
  care.

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MODUS OPERANDI
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WORLD SIGHT DAY(WSD)

• World Sight Day (WSD) is an annual day of
  awareness held on the second Thursday of October,
  to focus global attention on blindness and vision
  impairment.
• On World Sight Day, VISION 2020 members work
  together to
• Raise public awareness of blindness
• Influence Governments/Ministers of Health in
  developing countries
• Educate target audiences

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• World Sight Day 2008 (WSD08) focuses on the
  ageing eye, and vision impairment in older
  people. 
• The headline Eyes on the Future-fighting vision
  impairment in later life recognizes that in a
  world where populations are aging, and
  individuals are living longer, blindness from
  chronic conditions is also rising.

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THE INDIAN SCENARIO

• estimated 12 million blind people in the country.
  90 of the blind live in Rural Areas.
• (increase in life expectancy projected
  increase in country population)
• likely to rise the blind to more than 18 million
  by the year 2020 as per current trends.
• Blindness-mainly a problem of developing
  countries like ours, but a problem, which could
  be avoided in up to 80 of cases.

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• Established in 2004, Vision 2020 India, is a
  National
• confederate Body to strengthen the implementation
  of the
• Vision 2020 activities in alignment to national
  objectives and
• targets and thus contribute to the elimination of
  avoidable
• blindness
• to have an India free of avoidable blindness,
  where every citizen
• enjoys the gift of sight and the visually
  challenged have enhanced quality of life as a
  right.

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NEED FOR THE INDIAN INITIATIVE

• Vision for Vast Indian Population
• Incremental reduction of the burden of
• Avoidable Blindness - 75
• Social Responsibility
• Imbalance and Inadequacy in Service
• Urban Rural
• Overcoming obstacles in Outreach
• Necessity of Human Right / Dignity

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INITIATIVES

• Facilitation of State Action Plans
• Advocacy Information Sharing
• Interface with Policy makers/Politicians
• Development of XI Five Year Plan for the
  National Program
• Celebrating World Sight Day as National Event
• Capacity Building of member organizations
• Consultation
• Regional Workshops / Seminars
• Networking
• Development of Long Range Strategic Plan to
  achieve the objective of VISION 2020
• Brand Ambassador Mrs. Hema Malini

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ACHIEVEMENTS

• Since its launch, more than 100 Member States
  have been directly involved in the activities of
  VISION 2020.
• Impressive successes in the prevention of
  blindness (for example in Gambia, India, Morocco,
  Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand)
  testify to the commitment of local VISION 2020
  partners and demonstrate the impact and potential
  of this global initiative

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CHALLENGES

• Initiative does not operate in a static
  environment.
• More accurate estimates can be made of the extent
  of the problem and the patterns of causes in
  different countries and regions, adding to the
  agenda of VISION 2020.
• Prevalence of non-communicable chronic eye
  diseases continues to grow substantially
• Disparities in the allocation and availability of
  human and financial resources.

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THANK YOU!