The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), an alliance of eyecare organisations across the world, launched its “IAPB Vision Atlas” on World Sight Day on October 12. The IAPB Vision Atlas is a compilation of the latest global data and evidence on blindness and vision impairment. According to the Atlas, at least 36 million people worldwide are affected by blindness and 217 million people have moderate or severe distance vision impairment (MSVI).

The future is bright for Huyton woman Kelly Blackburn who doesn’t let her sight impairment stand in her way.

Five years after starting as a service user at Knowsley Council’s local day care activity base, Kelly, 23, is now working as a volunteer at the service – helping disabled adults and supporting the centre’s reception team.

Kelly’s impressive achievements have also seen her giving talks to social care professionals highlighting her experiences as a person with a sight impairment and raising awareness of the issues facing those with visual difficulties.

Taking up the cause of India’s blind people to help them get a chance to see the world, Union Tourism Minister KJ Alphons on Tuesday said that he favoured a legislation to make eye donation mandatory after death as is being done in Sri Lanka.

Speaking at the launch of Blind Walk — the world’s largest campaign for eye donation being held in 250 locations on the same day across five countries, Alphons said he would write to the Information and Technology and Health ministries to introduce a telephonic hotline for eye donation and make it mandatory after death.

Visually-impaired Liberians will for the first time get a chance to vote in the upcoming general election on Tuesday, but a lack of training on how to use special ballot devices may still leave many out.

Emmanuel Koyo, a 30-year-old visually-impaired man who survives by begging on Broad Street in capital Monrovia, told Anadolu Agency that he was looking forward to the opportunity to participate in the vote that will see the end of the two-term rule of Africa’s first female President, Ellen Johnson Sirelaf.

SHILLONG: On account of World Sight Day, 2017, the Project Vision, North East will organize “Walk for the Blind, Shillong” on October 12 with the primary objective to raise awareness on eye donation.

“Over 500 people are expected to attend the walk and 50 blind people will also participate”, Bhanwar Nain Singh Didan, President Blind Walk Shillong 2017 told reporters on Monday during a press meet.