FG Expands Eye Care, Targets 25,000 Free Cataract Surgeries

The Federal Government has announced plans to perform 25,000 free cataract surgeries nationwide by the end of 2027 as part of efforts to reduce avoidable blindness and improve access to quality eye care. The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja during an event marking the 2026 World Sight Day. Represented by the Director of e-Health Division, Mrs Doris Afam-Aneke, Salako said the initiative falls under the government’s Renewed Hope Health Connect programme, which seeks to restore sight, independence, productivity and hope to thousands of Nigerians. He described the target as ambitious but achievable, adding that the government had activated more than 1,400 primary healthcare centres nationwide to provide essential eye care services. According to him, more than 3,000 healthcare workers have also been trained across 16 states to strengthen the prevention, early detection and management of common eye conditions at community level. Salako said integrating primary eye care into the primary healthcare system remained central to bringing services closer to underserved communities. He further disclosed that more than 1.5 million pairs of prescription spectacles had been distributed across 16 states through the Effective Spectacle Coverage Initiative, known as Jigi-Bola 2.0, with preparations at an advanced stage to extend the programme to 10 additional states. More than 1.5 million school-age children have also been screened for visual problems, with those requiring treatment referred to appropriate health facilities.

The minister added that the government planned to establish four additional vision centres in Enugu, Edo, Sokoto and Nasarawa states to strengthen secondary eye care, improve referral systems and expand access to specialised treatment. He identified the key priorities of the National Eye Care Commitment as integrating eye care into primary healthcare centres, expanding access to ready-made spectacles, improving cataract surgical coverage, strengthening the eye health workforce and removing barriers to treatment. Salako also announced that Nigeria would co-host the first-ever Global Summit on Eye Health on November 2 in Antigua and Barbuda, describing it as an opportunity to strengthen international collaboration and promote the integration of eye care into universal health coverage. Earlier, the National Coordinator of the National Eye, Ear and Sensory Functions Health Programme, Dr Oteri Okolo Eme, said more than 80 per cent of visual impairment in Nigeria was avoidable, making stronger primary eye care services a strategic priority. Eme said the government had established national master trainers across the six geopolitical zones, trained about 4,000 primary healthcare workers and provided specialised primary eye care training to more than 2,200 others. She added that state-level trainers and facilitators had been trained to support nationwide expansion, while protocols for newborn eye screening were being developed to enable early detection and treatment of conditions that could cause visual impairment. Standardised guidelines for national priority eye conditions are also being developed. Eme said the forthcoming global summit would help accelerate action on eye health and urged governments, development partners, private organisations, healthcare workers, teachers, the media and the public to support the effort. She called for dedicated government budget allocations for eye care and encouraged Nigerians to undergo regular eye examinations.

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