UPCOMING EVENTS BY KOKETSO MAMABOLO
06 - 12 World Glaucoma Week Awareness is key for illnesses such as glaucoma, hence World Glaucoma Week which highlights this pernicious eye disease. “World Glaucoma Week is a unique initiative that puts a spotlight on glaucoma as the leading cause of preventable irreversible blindness worldwide. The prompt diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma can prevent needless vision impairment, however, so many are unaware they have the disease or may not have access to much-needed care. As the numbers are expected to increase exponentially, it is a growing public health concern that needs more attention and effective eye health systems,” says the President of the World Glaucoma Association.
50 | Public Sector Leaders | March 2022
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International Women’s Day
World Consumer Rights Day
“Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow” is this year’s theme for International Women’s Day. The theme brings attention to the significant burden that climate change has placed on women, who are disproportionately affected by the crisis. Poverty affects women the most and their reliance on natural resources places them in a position where the current trajectory could leave millions destitute.
Is the customer always right? What about their rights? What about the things they need? World Consumer Rights Day seeks to raise “global awareness about consumer rights and needs. Celebrating the day is a chance to demand that the rights of all consumers are respected and protected, and to protest against market abuses and social injustices which undermine those rights.” reads the What We Do page of Consumers International.
The UN says: “Continuing to examine the opportunities, as well as the constraints, to empower women and girls to have a voice and be equal players in decisionmaking related to climate change and sustainability is essential for sustainable development and greater gender equality. Without gender equality today, a sustainable future, and an equal future, remains beyond our reach.”
World Consumer Rights Day commemorates American President John F. Kennedy’s special message to the US Congress in 1962. This year is all about “fair digital finance''. Themes in recent years have included “tackling plastic pollution” and the “sustainable consumer”.