Advancing the Sustainable Development Goals through improving eye health: a scoping review

Abstract

UN member states have committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. This Review examines the published evidence on how improving eye health can contribute to advancing the SDGs (beyond SDG 3). We identified 29 studies that showed direct benefits from providing eye health services on SDGs related to one or more of poverty (SDGs 1, 2, and 8), education (SDG 4), equality (SDGs 5 and 10), and sustainable cities (SDG 11). The eye health services included cataract surgery, free cataract screening, provision of spectacles, trichiasis surgery, rehabilitation services, and rural community eye health volunteers. These findings provide a comprehensive perspective on the direct links between eye health services and advancing the SDGs. In addition, eye health services likely have indirect effects on multiple SDGs, mediated through one of the direct effects. Finally, there are additional plausible links to other SDGs, for which evidence has not yet been established.

Figure 1. Study selection

Figure 2. Summary of evidence linking specific services to improve eye health and specific Sustainable Development Goals

Green arrows indicate a direct positive benefit (n=27); grey arrows indicate a negative relationship (n=2). The width of the arrows represents the number of studies.

Figure 3. Improving eye health

Solid green arrows indicate relationships with direct evidence of a beneficial effect, black arrows represent likely indirect effects, and dashed green arrows represent hypothesised beneficial effects.