Bangladesh is facing a growing cataract burden, with nearly 1 million people currently waiting for surgery while more than 130,000 new patients are added to the waiting list each year, eye health experts said at a seminar in Dhaka on Tuesday.
The observations came at a seminar marking Cataract Awareness Month 2026 (June), organized by the Bangladesh Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (BSCRS) at the Super Specialized Hospital of Bangladesh Medical University.
Experts warned that the number of newly diagnosed cataract patients continues to exceed the country's annual surgical capacity, widening the treatment gap and putting more people at risk of preventable blindness.
They said the shortage of trained cataract surgeons remains one of the biggest challenges. Unless surgical services are expanded and access to treatment improves, the burden of cataract-related blindness is expected to increase further.
BSCRS Secretary General ASM Moin Uddin said Bangladesh currently has only one qualified cataract surgeon for every 833 patients awaiting surgery. Although the country has around 2,200 ophthalmologists, only about 1,200 actively perform cataract surgeries.
He said Bangladesh has only one-fourth of the ophthalmic surgeons recommended under international guidelines to eliminate avoidable blindness.
Highlighting the situation among children, Moin Uddin said an estimated 40,000 children in Bangladesh are blind, of whom nearly 12,000 have untreated childhood cataracts that could be corrected through surgery.
He also said cataracts remain the leading cause of blindness in Bangladesh, accounting for 79.6% of bilateral blindness cases, compared with the global average of 51%.
Prof Nazrul Islam, chairman of the Cataract Awareness Month Celebration Programme, said the annual number of new cataract cases has surpassed the number of surgeries being performed. He stressed the need to expand surgical capacity and strengthen public awareness to reduce preventable blindness.
Speaking at the seminar, SM Ziauddin Hyder, special assistant to the prime minister on health affairs, said the government is giving greater priority to preventive and promotive healthcare rather than relying primarily on treatment-based services.
He said early diagnosis and preventive interventions could help save many people from losing their eyesight, adding that the government has already taken initiatives in this regard.
The seminar was presided over by BSCRS President Showkat Kabir. Prof Shahabuddin and Prof Touhidur Rahman, president of the Ophthalmological Society of Bangladesh (OSB), also addressed the program.