New Developments
All these developments have necessitated revisions in the structure and governance of the IAPB, as laid down in the current constitution. A Constitutional Review Committee was set up in 2002 with Dr. Pararajasegaram, as Chair, to amend the Constitution, incorporating the opinions of stakeholders. As well as modifications in terminology and structure, the new Constitution was aligned with the Charity Law in UK, where IAPB is now incorporated. The new Constitution was ratified by the Seventh General Assembly of IAPB in Dubai, in September 2004.
The WHO released new data on the prevalence of global blindness in late 2004. According to the new figures, in 2002, 161 million people were visually impaired, of whom 124 million people had low vision, and 37 million were blind. Cataract (47.8%) continues to be a major cause for global blindness, especially in the developing countries. Glaucoma (12.3%), age-related macular degeneration (8.7%) and diabetic retinopathy (4.8%), along with cataract, account for close to 75% of all blindness in the world. Taking into account the changes in world population over the past 12 years, the magnitude of blindness in 2002 appears to be lower than was projected — 37 million, instead of the projected 52 million. These figures seem to indicate early success for VISION 2020, but also continue to highlight the challenge of achieving the VISION 2020 goal of eliminating avoidable blindness.
- Mectizan Donation Program
- World Blind Union
- International Council of Ophthalmology(formerly the International Federation of Ophthalmological Societies)
- WHO Programme for Prevention of Blindness
- VISION 2020: The Right to Sight
- VISION 2020 Latin America
- IAPB
- IAPB-Italy
Read more about this topic: International Agency For The Prevention Of Blindness
Famous quotes containing the word developments:
“The developments in the North were those loosely embraced in the term modernization and included urbanization, industrialization, and mechanization. While those changes went forward apace, the antebellum South changed comparatively little, clinging to its rural, agricultural, labor-intensive economy and its traditional folk culture.”
—C. Vann Woodward (b. 1908)
“I don’t wanna live in a city where the only cultural advantage is that you can make a right turn on a red light.
Freedom from labor itself is not new; it once belonged among the most firmly established privileges of the few. In this instance, it seems as though scientific progress and technical developments had been only taken advantage of to achieve something about which all former ages dreamed but which none had been able to realize.”
—Hannah Arendt (1906–1975)