Pakistan
Sightsavers started working in Pakistan in 1985. Our work in the country focuses on treating eye conditions such as cataracts, which affect millions of people.
Pakistan is the sixth most populated country in the world, yet almost 30 per cent of the population live in poverty.
Eye care facilities are often scarce, inaccessible and mainly based in urban areas, and many people are not aware of the importance of looking after their vision. As a result, eye conditions such as cataracts are common, but can be easily treated if people have access to eye care.
Sightsavers aims to strengthen the country’s health system to ensure everyone can be treated for eye issues. We train health workers and raise awareness of eye health within communities, focusing particularly on marginalised groups including, women, children and people with disabilities.
We’ve trained more than 85,000 Lady Health Workers to provide health care in the community: they visit families regularly to ensure that all children, even those who don’t attend school, have their eyes examined for conditions including refractive error and cataracts. As a result of the training, every year millions of women and children are getting access to primary eye care at their doorstep, and a referral chain has been set up to ensure they receive the treatment they need.
We also train teachers to screen children in schools.
Watch a video of our Pakistan Country Director explaining how Sightsavers is helping to achieve the United Nations’ Global Goals in Pakistan.
At a glance
Total populationWhat we focus on
Key programmes
How we’re making a difference in Pakistan
Cataract surgery
Cataracts caused Zamurrad’s life to grind to a halt, leaving her fearful for the future. But a straightforward operation restored her sight.
Disability rights
In Pakistan, our Right to Health programme is transforming local eye health care to make sure people with disabilities aren’t excluded.
Reaching everyone
Sightsavers’ Guillaume Trotignon visited Pakistan to see whether people living in urban slums in Lahore are able to get eye treatment.
Your donation could help to protect sight
DONATEMore from Pakistan
A journey, not a destination: eye health integration in Pakistan
Following simple steps can help decision-makers and donors to improve the system further, helping millions of people in need of eye care services in rural areas.
How Sightsavers celebrated World Sight Day
To mark World Sight Day 2019 on 10 October, Sightsavers country offices celebrated by highlighting the need to provide good-quality eye care to everyone.
August updates: highlights from around the world
A round-up of the latest work that your donations help to support, including news from Nigeria, Mozambique, Pakistan and India.
How Pakistan is keeping disability inclusion on the SDG agenda
Over two years, Sightsavers in Pakistan worked with strategic stakeholders and national partners to develop a voluntary national review report that focused on disability.
April updates: highlights from around the world
A round-up of the latest work that your donations help to support, including news from Pakistan, Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire.
How partnerships help us reach vulnerable communities
In Pakistan, we work with disabled people’s organisations to ensure our new eye health programme is inclusive and accessible for people with disabilities.
November updates: highlights from around the world
News about a programme that has distributed more than 137,000 pairs of glasses across eight countries. Plus updates from Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique and more.
October updates: highlights from around the world
In October, celebrations took place in many of Sightsavers' programme countries to mark World Sight Day. Plus news from Kenya, Mozambique and more.
Naheed’s story
Naheed is one of the final patients to have surgery as a result of our Million Miracles campaign, which has raised enough to fund a million cataract operations in the countries where we work.
Eye care for those who need it most
In Pakistan, Ulrica Hansson learns how Sightsavers’ Right to Health programme is transforming local health care so people with disabilities are no longer excluded.
July highlights: updates from around the world
An update from Benin, where eye care staff have been travelling 3km on foot to treat ‘the disease at the end of the road’. Plus news from Nigeria, Pakistan and more.
Charter for disability inclusion is agreed at Pakistan summit
The charter aims to make sure people with disabilities are included in the country’s social and economic development.
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