SightQuest Nigeria Programme

CBM's 10-year programme, with a budget of 15 million euros, aims to improve access to affordable, comprehensive, and inclusive eye health services.

Dr. Iziaq Salako, Minister of State for Health, and Dr. Oteri Okolo, National Coordinator for the National Eye, Ear and Sensory Functions Health Programme, launched the SightQuest Nigeria programme with Dr. Rainer Brockhaus, CEO of CBM, and Dr. Babar Qureshi, Director of CBM's Inclusive Health Initiative.

In many parts of Nigeria, losing sight is a slow, predictable outcome of living far from services, living with poverty, or living with a disability in a place where inclusion of persons with disabilities is still a challenge. A cloudy eye lens can make reading, farming, teaching, and caring for children feel like guesswork. A child who needs glasses can sit in class for years without seeing the blackboard. These are everyday problems with known solutions that too often arrive late, or do not arrive at all.

CBM has launched a 10-year programme with a budget of 15 million euros to change this by strengthening access to affordable, comprehensive, and inclusive eye health services.

Programme snapshot

SightQuest Nigeria Programme focuses on the health system and the patient pathway, from the first moment a person notices their vision failing to the point where sight is restored and stays restored.

The programme will run from 2026 to 2035. It expands inclusive eye health services across 14 of Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

The overall goal is to contribute to eliminating avoidable visual impairment in Nigeria by 2035.

Specifically, by 2035, the programme also aims to improve the eye health service delivery system in 14 states, improve effective Cataract Surgical Coverage(eCSC) and increase effective Refractive Error Coverage(eREC) in 10 states respectively.

Why Nigeria

Nigeria’s national blindness survey (2005 – 2007) shows the scale of need and the scale of opportunity. Among adults aged 40 years and above, an estimated 1,130,000 people live with blindness. The survey also found that 84% of blindness is preventable, shifting the narrative from fate to access. When most vision loss is avoidable, these high numbers signal a gap in service delivery.

The causes of vision loss also point to where the biggest returns lie. Cataract alone accounts for 43% of blindness. This matters because cataract blindness is reversible with safe surgery. Uncorrected refractive error is the leading cause of mild and moderate visual impairment. Yet a simple eye test and a pair of spectacles can restore functional vision. In other words, the largest share of vision loss stems from problems that can be addressed at scale if the system delivers.

In Nigeria, limited access to eye care services is a major reason people become blind and remain blind, driven by financial constraints and inadequate service coverage. This inequity particularly affects rural dwellers, less privileged individuals, and persons with disabilities. Additionally, most eye health professionals are concentrated in urban areas, further limiting access for those in rural regions.

Launch of the programme

Why quality is non-negotiable

A recent Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness (RAAB) survey in Jigawa State, Nigeria (2025), reported a huge gap between Cataract Surgical Coverage (CSC) of 78.0% and effective cataract surgical coverage of only 26.3%. This shows that coverage alone does not necessarily result in effective cataract surgical coverage.

Put simply, many people went through surgery but did not regain good vision afterwards. This points to a quality gap of about two-thirds.

The solution is direct. Closing the quality gap can restore sight without waiting for breakthroughs or new technologies. It requires the basics done well: skilled teams, proper equipment, good case selection, good follow up, and systems that learn.

The survey also identified an unmet need of 11,620 individuals requiring cataract surgery. While one state performs 2,500 to 3,000 surgeries annually, improving access and outcomes can help eliminate blindness in the most affected groups. The key challenge is not only volume. It is the combination of volume, quality, and equitable reach.

What is changing, and why it matters

SightQuest Nigeria focuses on two outcomes that often get blurred in eye health discussions: coverage and effectiveness.

Coverage answers one question. Did people receive a service?
Effectiveness answers the harder question. Did the service restore useful vision and improve daily life.

This distinction is not academic. A person who receives cataract surgery but still cannot see well has passed through the system yet remains blind. That is why the programme targets effective Cataract Surgical Coverage, not surgery volume alone.

 

How the programme works

CBM’s Inclusive Health Initiative works with national and local partners to deliver high-quality, disability-inclusive health services. The focus is twofold. Strengthen the health system and make care accessible and affordable for people who are most often excluded.

The approach starts at district level. SightQuest strengthens secondary-level services for the most common causes of vision loss, including cataract and refractive error. This is linked to strong primary-level eye care and referral pathways, so people are identified early, guided through the system, treated, and followed up. The goal is a people-centred continuum of care that reaches rural communities, poor households, persons with disabilities, and other marginalised groups.

The programme also invests in better decision-making. Digital tools and emerging technologies support timely care, stronger quality assurance, and smarter use of data for planning and performance improvement.

The SightQuest initiative is complemented by CBM’s investments in eye health and other health areas:

  • Development of the first high fidelity computer-based cataract surgery simulation training facilities in Ibadan and Kano, designed to accelerate safe surgical training and skills development.
  • Increase investments in community based inclusive development and physical rehabilitation services as well as ear and hearing care.
  • CBM also makes significant investments and development of programmes for Neglected tropical diseases.

 

The programme aligns with Nigeria’s national eye health strategies, policies and plans, and contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals, including good health and wellbeing (SDG 3), quality education (SDG 4), decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), and partnerships for the goals (SDG 17). CBM supports this work as part of its long-term commitment to inclusive eye health and disability-inclusive development.

 

Expected results by 2035

By 2035, SightQuest targets a 30-percentage point improvement in effective Cataract Surgical Coverage in 10 states. Five states are expected to reach this improvement earlier, by 2030.

In the same 10 states, the programme will increase effective Refractive Error Coverage by 2035. The emphasis is on effectiveness because spectacles only change lives if people can access refractive services, receive appropriate correction, and continue using them.

SightQuest will contribute to eliminating avoidable visual impairment caused by cataract and uncorrected refractive errors, while strengthening systems across 14 states to sustain progress and extend it.

 

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