Urgent Appeal to Support Cataract Programs in Africa

remaining: 328 days

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Campaign Objective : 197000 USD

INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC YOUTH LEAGUE

Over 2 million people in Africa are impacted by blindness

75% of all blindness is curable or preventable, and yet millions of vulnerable people continue to live in darkness. Blindness is a direct cause of poverty as it prevents people from working, going to school, and impacts their contributions to society.

A leading cause of blindness is cataracts. Cataract is the clouding of the lens of the eye, which is usually clear. The clouding begins to affect vision, and if left untreated can result in complete loss of sight. Cataracts are easily curable, whereby the clouded lens is removed and replaced with a clear one. Despite the simple procedure, many people living in impoverished communities do not have access to quality healthcare.

International Islamic Youth League is providing free cataract surgeries, screenings and testing to people from impoverished backgrounds around the world. Since 2010, we have carried out an incredible 252, 028 free cataract surgeries – giving the gift of sight to those in need.

Urgent Appeal to Support Cataract Programs in Africa

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Urgent Appeal to Support Cataract Camp Surgery Programs in Africa

Blindness is debilitating, particularly in the developing world. This project will help restore sight to one thousand (1000) individual’s blind patients in Africa with their sight regained, they will return to work and contribute to their families’ income.

Cataract is a medical condition in which the lens of the eye became progressively opaque, resulting in blurring of vision. It has been estimated that cataracts accounted for 47.8% of the 37 million people who were blind worldwide. A significant number of those affected with cataracts leave in rural areas, and most are indigent (those that cannot afford to pay for medical services). Most of these patients resort to begging along the streets seeking assistance.

This number is likely to increase substantially, as approximately 600,000 Africans become blind from cataract each year. Despite the enormity of the problem, few cataract operations are performed in Africa. The cataract surgery rate (CSR), a measure of the volume of cataract surgery performed in a population, is about 500 per million per year in Africa. To tackle cataract blindness, the International Islamic Youth League initiative, a programme involving Federation of Muslim Association FIMA, the World Health Organization, the Ministry of Public Health and Hygiene, Medical and Dental Council, the International Agency for Prevention of Blindness, and various governmental and non-governmental organisations, aims to increase the CSR in Africa to about 2000 per million per year.

Urgent Appeal to Support Cataract Programs in Africa