Nine countries across all endemic WHO regions have also been validated for achieving elimination. During the same period, the number of people requiring surgery for trachomatous trichiasis (TT), the late blinding stage of trachoma, reduced from 7.6 million to 2.5 million – a 68% reduction. In June 2019, WHO announced a 91% global reduction in the number of people at risk of trachoma, from 1.5 billion in 2002 to 142.2 million today. There has been significant advancement towards elimination since the launch of VISION 2020. Again, this wasnt a realistic goal for many in risk. Trachoma, the world's leading infectious cause of blindness, is one of the priority diseases targeted by VISION 2020. More realistic goals were later set by the World Health Organization to provide 20/20 vision by 2020. VISION 2020 has three key objectives: 1) the control of diseases that affect eye health 2) the development of human resources and 3) the provision of appropriate technology and infrastructure. VISION 2020 aims to build comprehensive and sustainable eye health systems by integrating existing health services and ensuring high quality universal eye care. This global initiative was created to eliminate causes of avoidable blindness by the year 2020.

On 18 February 1999, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) launched VISION 2020: The Right to Sight. Women in Napak, Uganda, after trichiasis surgery at a camp set up by the local health department in collaboration with Sightsavers as part of The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust Trachoma Initiative, with support from UK Aid.

Beyond 2020 optometry download