Antigua and Barbuda leads charge in providing access to eye health for women and girls globally

As delegates from around the globe gathered at the United Nations this week for the annual Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) conference, Antigua and Barbuda is using the occasion to galvanize support and build momentum for improving eye health among female populations worldwide.

Antigua and Barbuda’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Walton Webson is co-chair of the Friends of Vision Group, which was established in 2018, to advance eye health as a crucial development and human rights issue. As the international community marks World Glaucoma Week and on the margins of CSW, Friends of Vision hosted a major event themed “No Woman Left Behind – Advancing Eye Health Equity for Women and Girls.”

Women face significant barriers in accessing eye care, making it difficult for them to secure educational opportunities or employment and achieve their own financial independence. The event paid special attention to the global efforts to eliminate Trachoma, an infectious disease that causes blindness and disproportionately affects woman and girls globally.

“Countries must prioritize the inclusion of gender-responsive eye health services and invest in policies that ensure women and girls can access these services regardless of where they live. This is not just about health—it is about empowering women to participate fully in life,” Ambassador Webson stressed.

In view of these challenges, Ambassador Webson is encouraged by the possibilities of the 2026 Global Summit on Eye Health in mobilizing resources to address the disparities in providing eye health services to all, regardless of gender.

“We must harness the collective political will to prioritize vision within global development financing mechanisms, strengthen national health systems, and hold ourselves accountable through measurable targets and data,” Ambassador Webson told the meeting.

Also in attendance at the session was Her Royal Highness Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, who is the Global Ambassador for the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB). Both Ambassador and the Duchess of Edinburgh exchanged ideas on their shared concerns about access to eye health and discussed the way forward ahead of next year’s Global Summit.

Following the side event, Ambassador Webson, who co-chairs Friends of Vision along with Ireland and Bangladesh, led discussions at the organisation’s first meeting of the year where a number of major matters that align with the UN’s overall vision on providing eye health for all were ventilated.

Joining Ambassador Webson at the meeting were the Antigua and Barbuda delegation to CSW, headed by President of the Senate, the Hon. Alincia Williams Grant, and First Secretaries at the Antigua and Barbuda Mission to the United Nations Claxton Duberry and Asha Challenger.