UNION Minister for Health and Sports Dr Myint Htwe and Magway Region Chief Minister Dr Aung Moe Nyo attended the World Sight Day 2019 event held at Magway town hall yesterday afternoon.

At the event the Union Minister said the second Thursday of October was designated as World Sight Day and World Health Organization (WHO) member countries were observing the day annually. Myanmar starts observing the day in 2000.

The theme of this year World Sight Day was “Vision First” urging all to give priority to vision, conduct test and obtain treatment when required. According to WHO estimate, the world had 246 million people who had vision impairment and 39 million had lost their vision or eye sight. 90 per cent of these people were from developing countries and 80 per cent of the vision problems were curable and preventable.

According to a survey conducted in 2017, 2.9 per cent of Myanmar people who were 50 years old and above lost their vision and about 70 per cent were due to glaucoma. The aim was to provide effective treatment of cataract to prevent and reduce vision lost. WHO target was 3,000 cataract operations per one million and cataract operation in 2018 increased to 2,280 per million in Myanmar. Arrangements were also made to provide preliminary and specialist eye care services by training and producing more optometrists, ophthalmologists and opticians. Myanmar had also met WHO’s Elimination Criteria for Trachoma and arrangements were made to conduct a survey in 2020 to announce the elimination of Trachoma in Myanmar. Training courses on Primary Eye Care and course to care for the eye were being increasingly conducted in states, regions and schools. All are urged to cooperate and participate enthusiastically in the aim of WHO to reduce and eliminate treatable eye diseases in 2020 and the public was urged to place emphasis on eye health, take tests and treatments said the Union Minister.

Next, Magway Region Chief Minister Dr Aung Moe Nyo also delivered a speech. Afterwards, the Union Minister, Chief Minister and officials inspected the photo exhibit, eye test and inspection conducted.

Earlier in the day the Union Minister, Magway Region Chief Minister and officials inspected the soon-to-be-opened five-storey building in Magway People’s Hospital.

MNA

(Translated by Zaw Min)