The UK is stepping up efforts to help eliminate trachoma, a painful bacterial infection that can lead to permanent loss of sight among some of the poorest people in the world.
At this week's Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London the UK's international development secretary, Penny Mordaunt, has pledged an extra £20million to provide sight-saving antibiotics and surgery to people in 10 Commonwealth countries.
Trachoma, the leading infectious cause of blindness in the world, is an incredibly painful condition which can lead to permanent loss of sight. Less serious cases can be treated with antibiotics, while more severe cases require surgery. The World Health Organization is aiming for the disease to be wiped out around the world by 2020.
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