14 Dec 2015

The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates of 2009 show that there were more than 1.2 million visually impaired children, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health Dr Shenaaz El-Halabi has said.

Speaking during Korea Electrical Power Corporation Post Cataract Surgeries celebration at Lenmed Health Bokamoso Private Hospital, Dr El-Halabi said about 500 000 lived in Sub-Sahara with this number likely to increase if effective intervention was not put in place.

He said evidence suggested that vision impairment and blindness was a leading and largely preventable cause of disability worldwide. 

Dr El-Halabi urged parents and guardians to exercise personal and environmental hygiene by ensuring that they washed face and hands to prevent eye infection adding that prevention of children against eye injuries was vital.

She advised parents to avoid putting sharp objects like toys and guns where children could easily access them and ensure that children under the age of five were immunised against measles.

Dr El-Halabi encouraged pregnant mothers on consumption of food that is rich in vitamin A to prevent deficiency and also urging them to attend antenatal care clinics in order to prevent infection to the newborn eyes.

Chief representative of Korea Electrical Power Corporation (KEPCO), Mr Bae Sang Ha, said government-owned company was carrying out various social contribution programmes to fulfill its responsibility as a global company.

Mr Sang Ha said since 2011, KEPCO has supported eye surgery costs for families in Korea and abroad who could not afford surgery and could have lost their sight if they would not have eye operation.

He said KEPCO had an opportunity to support Batswana since 2012 and so far 23  people had benefited from the programme. Ends