Eye conditions are remarkably common. The World Health Organization estimates that globally, at least 1 billion people  have a near or distance vision impairment that could have been prevented or has yet to be addressed.

In November 2018, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 4 January as World Braille Day. Each year this provides an opportunity to recognise the importance of inclusive written promotion to support the full realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Braille is a tactile representation of alphabetic and numerical symbols using six dots to represent each letter and number, and even musical, mathematical and scientific symbols. Braille is used by blind and partially sighted people to read the same material as those printed in a visual font.

Braille is essential in the context of education, freedom of expression and opinion, as well as social inclusion. The pandemic has revealed how critically important it is to produce essential information in accessible formats, including in Braille and audible formats.

For more information, visit: https://www.un.org/en/observances/braille-day