Rights-based approach getting results

The booklet highlights the work of The Fred Hollows Foundation as a good example of programs successfully working towards Millennium Development Goal 1 ‘the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger'.

A human rights-based approach emphasises accountability of governments while at the same time empowering local communities.

The Foundation's work in Vietnam demonstrates the effectiveness of working in partnership with government departments to improve the delivery of eye care services, and empowering communities to be self-reliant and able to take action to meet their own human rights.

Blindness is both a cause and a consequence of poverty. Forty-five million people around the world are blind, with an overwhelming majority (90%) living in low-income countries.

In these countries, blindness brings an inescapable cycle of disability and extreme poverty - hunger, malnutrition and limited access to health, education, water and sanitation services. Blindness also creates a high burden of care on family members, particularly women and children, who need to stay home from work or school to care for their visually impaired relative. Where many live close to the poverty line, this loss of income has an immediate impact on family wellbeing.

The Foundation supports the Government of Vietnam to implement the global avoidable blindness initiative: VISION 2020 - The Right to Sight. VISION 2020 is a joint initiative between WHO and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB).

A key part of this initiative has been to advocate for governments to recognise avoidable blindness as a key development issue and then provide support and resources for the implementation of national programs. The Government of Vietnam has prioritised avoidable blindness as an issue, and has already developed a National VISION 2020 Plan.

The Foundation has supported the implementation of this Plan across Vietnam through:

• the strengthening of sustainable health systems
• building the capacity of government medical teams at Provincial and District levels to perform high quality, low cost cataract surgery
• providing essential ophthalmic equipment to various eye care facilities.

The Foundation trains medical teams to currently perform around 10,000 cataract surgeries per year in Vietnam, with a focus on the poorest and most marginalised. Of these, approximately 1,500 cataract surgeries are undertaken through projects supported through AusAID funding.

Download ACFID's Millennium Development Rights booklet to find out more.

In September 2000, all Member States of the United Nations recognised the "collective responsibility to uphold the principles of human dignity, equality and equity at a global level". The resulting United Nations Millennium Declaration determined that the benefits of globalisation must be shared equally by all of the world's people.

A set of eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have been adopted by governments worldwide, as well as the world's leading development organizations. The goals are to be met by 2015. They focus on eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, child and maternal health, education, gender equality, environment, HIV/Aids and global partnership.