A landmark moment for global eye health: from ambition to action
Global Summit for Eye Health | Antigua and Barbuda | 2 November 2026
The first Global Summit for Eye Health has marked a turning point in the global effort to end avoidable sight loss, bringing together world leaders, governments, international organisations, businesses and civil society around a shared ambition: to make eye health a political, health and development priority.
Hosted by Antigua and Barbuda, with Bangladesh, Guyana, Ireland and Nigeria as co-hosts, the Summit secured 191 landmark commitments spanning more than 115 countries, demonstrating what can be achieved when political leadership, strategic ambition and practical partnerships come together.
The Summit also saw the endorsement of the St John's Global Compact for Eye Health by 173 stakeholders, establishing a framework for sustained political leadership, implementation and accountability.
The outcomes are extraordinary. 48 governments committed to integrating eye care into national health systems, including primary health care and Universal Health Coverage. Governments pledged more than US$1.23 billion in domestic resources, while commitments from international partners, philanthropies and the private sector will help accelerate delivery.
From expanding access to affordable glasses and school-based vision screening to eliminating cataract-related blindness and trachoma, the commitments reach across health systems, education and economic development. They include regulatory reforms, investment in the eye health workforce, innovative technologies and new approaches to sustainable financing.
For Oshun Partnership, the Summit represents the culmination of two years of close collaboration with the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB).
Sarah Beeching, Oshun's Executive Director, has worked alongside IAPB's leadership and Board to develop the strategy, build political momentum and shape the partnerships needed to translate a bold vision into tangible global commitments.
Reflecting on the Summit, Sarah said:
"The most exciting thing about this Summit isn't the number of commitments, extraordinary though they are. It's the recognition that eye health is not a peripheral health issue. It is fundamental to how people learn, work and live their lives. Over the past two years, we've worked to turn that simple truth into political ambition and, now, into action. The real measure of our success will be the lives changed by what happens next."
The Summit is not the finish line. Its legacy will be determined by how effectively governments and partners deliver on their promises, supported by transparent monitoring and sustained political leadership.
For Oshun, it is a powerful reminder of what strategic advocacy can achieve: bringing the right people, ideas and institutions together to turn ambition into impact.
Explore the Summit outcomes:
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