Togo is involved in an ambitious approach to improve eye health by developing a new national strategy for the period 2025-2029.
Supported by the National Eye Health Program (PNSO), this initiative benefits from the technical and financial support of the Christian Blind Mission (CBM) and the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
This strategy aims to provide suitable care, reduce visual impairments and effectively fight against blindness, a major public health problem in the country.
In order to better understand the extent of the phenomenon and collect updated data, an investigation was carried out across the country. This has focused on the prevalence and causes of eye diseases and visual impairments, with particular emphasis on people aged 50 and over, considered to be the most vulnerable.
The collected data reveals a worrying situation:
-- Bilateral visual impairment affects 40.8 % of people examined, both in the south and in the north of the country.
- Unilateral visual impairment affects 18.1 % of people in the south and 18.9 % in the north.
- However, normal vision was found in 41.1 % of people in the south and 40.2 % in the north.
These figures highlight the urgency of intervening to meet eye health needs, particularly among the elderly and vulnerable populations.
The results of the survey will serve as a basis for the development of the new national strategy.
The strategy will aim in particular to strengthen the prevention and screening of eye diseases at all levels, to improve access to eye care for distant or marginalized populations to train more health professionals specializing in ophthalmology and to raise awareness of Good practice in ocular health.
In Togo, blindness remains a worrying public health problem.
