04 September 2004	Saturday	18 Rajab 1425

LAHORE, Sept 3: The Punjab health department is creating a system of monitoring and evaluation for apposite use of development funds.

This was stated by Punjab Health Minister Dr Tahir Ali Javed during a meeting with the delegation of a UK-based NGO here on Friday. He said the role of international donors was being strengthened for the health sector.

The delegation discussed with him matters of improvement in eye care and showed keen interest in community welfare projects for treatment of eye diseases. The minister said the project, launched in collaboration with the financial assistance of the Sight Savers International UK, would provide state-of-the-art ophthalmology facilities to the people of far-flung areas.

Under this project, he said, around $12 million would be spent on the provision of better eye treatment facilities, besides imparting of the latest training facilities to surgeons and other paramedics.

The minister hoped that this project would help eliminate blindness from the country by 2020. He said the government had also initiated another ophthalmology programme with the assistance of an Australian NGO, Fred Hollows, at a cost of $5 million for the upgrade of eye treatment in all districts of the province.