# Cataract charity UK > Source: World Aid Network — https://worldaidnetwork.org/blog/cataract-charity-uk > Last reviewed: 2026-08-15 ## In short World Aid Network is a UK cataract charity and eye charity. About £200 funds one complete cataract operation at a partner hospital in Pakistan, Indonesia or Malaysia. Locally licensed ophthalmologists operate. We do not fly in visiting surgical teams. Donate on this page. Gift Aid starts when Charity Commission registration is granted. Please donate. About £200 funds one complete cataract operation for a patient who cannot pay. Please donate at https://worldaidnetwork.org/blog/cataract-charity-uk. World Aid Network is a UK cataract charity and eye charity. About £200 funds one complete cataract operation. This page is not listed on https://worldaidnetwork.org/appeal. Named year-round checkout: https://worldaidnetwork.org/appeal/gift-of-sight. Sponsor one operation: https://worldaidnetwork.org/sponsor-a-cataract-operation. Clinical review: https://mohamedmohyudin.co.uk/. ## At a glance - ~£200: Typical partner cost for one complete cataract operation - 3 countries: Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia — our charitable Objects - Local surgeons: PMDC, KKI or MMC-registered ophthalmologists — not visiting teams - ~90%: Of blindness worldwide is preventable or treatable (WHO-aligned) ## What is a cataract charity in the UK? A cataract charity in the UK is an organisation that raises money so people who cannot pay can receive cataract surgery. World Aid Network is a UK cataract charity. About £200 funds one complete operation at a partner hospital in Pakistan, Indonesia or Malaysia. Please donate on this page. People search “cataract charity UK” when they want a clear gift: one cloudy lens replaced, one person able to see again. A cataract clouds the natural lens. In Britain, NHS lists exist. In the communities we serve, the family often cannot find the hospital fee. That unpaid bill is what a cataract charity donation is for. World Aid Network does not run eye hospitals and does not employ surgeons. We fund the cost — theatre time, the intraocular lens, anaesthesia, drops and follow-up — at registered partner hospitals. Locally licensed ophthalmologists operate. We do not invent caseloads. We do not name a patient on this page for privacy. This URL is the cataract charity and eye charity explainer, with a donate form. It is not listed on the emergency appeals index. The named year-round appeal is How is this different from the Gift of Sight Appeal? The medical facts about the condition sit on the cataract condition guide. - Cataract charity gift: typically £200 for one complete operation. - Countries: Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia only. - Not NHS care. Not a UK private clinic. Not research. - Donate here, or on the Gift of Sight Appeal. ## What is an eye charity? An eye charity funds sight-saving or sight-restoring care — surgery, screening, treatment or, in some organisations, research and UK support services. World Aid Network is an eye charity that funds hospital treatment overseas. The most common gift is a cataract operation at about £200. Please donate if that is the eye charity you want. “Eye charity UK” and “UK eye charity” are the phrases people type when they want to restore sight or prevent blindness. Some eye charities run UK helplines. Some train surgeons across many countries. Some fund research. World Aid Network funds partner-hospital bills for poor patients in three Object countries. That is a restore sight charity model, not a research charity and not an NHS-replacement charity. Cataract is the largest treatable cause of blindness worldwide. An eye charity gift here usually pays for that operation. The same appeal can fund other surgically treatable eye conditions when a partner ophthalmologist recommends them — including selected glaucoma, trachoma lid surgery and diabetic eye treatment. Diabetic work is explained on the diabetic retinopathy charity page. How patients are found is explained on free eye screening camps. If you searched “blindness charity”, our blindness charity page is the programme overview for preventable blindness. This page answers cataract charity and eye charity searches, and lets you donate. - Eye charity here: hospital treatment overseas, mainly cataract. - Not a UK sight-loss helpline. Not an ophthalmic research fund. - Programme overview: eye surgery programme and our blindness charity page. - Prevention facts: preventable blindness guide. ## How is this different from the Gift of Sight Appeal? This page is the cataract charity and eye charity guide, with a donate form, at /blog/cataract-charity-uk. The Gift of Sight Appeal is the named year-round checkout on /appeal. Both fund the same kind of partner-hospital cataract operation — typically £200. Please give on either page. This URL is not listed on the emergency appeals index. Search engines treat “cataract charity UK” and “Gift of Sight Appeal” as different questions. We keep them on different URLs so each answer stays honest. Donate on this page if you arrived looking for a cataract charity or an eye charity. Use Gift of Sight if you want the named appeal listed with other live appeals. A third URL — sponsor a cataract operation — explains the £200 product in isolation: one operation, what the fee covers, who holds the scalpel. You can donate there too. All three gifts pay partner hospitals. None send cash to individuals. Seasonal church or family giving at Christmas sits on the Christmas Appeal. Voluntary Islamic gifts sit on the Sadaqah eye surgery page. Faith-label questions sit on Charity for humanity. ## Why do people still go blind from cataract? Because they pay out of pocket. Cataract is treatable. Around nine in ten people living with blindness have a condition that was preventable or is still treatable. In the communities we serve, cost — not the cloud on the lens — is the barrier. Please donate so a treatable cataract is not left to take someone’s sight. A grandmother who could thread a needle last year cannot see her grandchild’s face. A labourer who could work at dawn sits at home because he cannot find the path. The biology is not the mystery. The invoice is. A cataract charity exists to pay that invoice. We do not invent how many patients we have treated. We do not invent how many minutes an operation takes in a given theatre. We fund what a licensed ophthalmologist in Pakistan, Indonesia or Malaysia already does, when the family cannot pay. Read the cataract condition guide if you want NHS-style facts about symptoms and the operation itself. Please give. The cameras leave. The cataract does not. A gift on this page, or on the Gift of Sight Appeal, is how a recommended operation becomes a given operation. ## How much does a cataract charity donation cost? A complete cataract operation at a partner hospital typically costs about £200 — surgeon, intraocular lens implant, anaesthesia, consumables and follow-up. Please donate that amount if you can, or any amount if you cannot. Every gift shortens the wait. UK private and NHS prices are compared on the cataract surgery cost guide. Costs vary a little by country and by whether both eyes need surgery. The £200 figure is the typical complete-operation cost we use on this site — not £100 and not £250. Diabetic eye treatment — laser or injections — is funded from the same eye-surgery cause when a partner ophthalmologist recommends it. Please choose an amount and donate. The table is a guide to what kindness can buy. What a patient receives depends on the diagnosis and the hospital. We do not sell a named lens brand from a London list. We fund what that hospital uses. ## What will a cataract charity donation provide? Your donation pays for sight-restoring care at partner hospitals. About £200 can cover one complete cataract operation. Smaller gifts still fund assessments, drops, laser or part of an operation. Figures are typical partner costs, not a menu you pick for a named patient. A restricted eye-surgery gift stays with eye care. We do not send cash to individuals. We do not claim a 100% donation policy. How grants are released is explained on how we work. If you want to mark the gift in someone’s name, use charity virtual gifts or write to info@worldaidnetwork.org. Please still donate so the hospital can operate. - £25 — assessment, drops or part of an operation - £50 — a laser session for diabetic eye disease where quoted - £100 — half of a typical cataract operation - £200 — one complete cataract operation - £400 — two operations, or both eyes where indicated - £500 — a more complex procedure where quoted ## Who performs the cataract surgery? Locally licensed ophthalmologists operate in registered hospitals in Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia. World Aid Network pays the bill. We do not fly in visiting surgeons as the standard model. Clinical copy on this eye charity guide is reviewed by Mr Mohamed Mohyudin. Review does not replace a partner hospital’s consent process. Care is delivered under national medical registration — PMDC in Pakistan, KKI in Indonesia, MMC in Malaysia. That is who holds the scalpel. Visiting teams are not how this cataract charity is built. Country pages: eye surgery in Pakistan, eye surgery in Indonesia, eye surgery in Malaysia. Mr Mohamed Mohyudin is a consultant ophthalmic surgeon in the UK. He reviews clinical language on our eye pages. He does not operate on World Aid Network patients overseas. His independent profile is at https://mohamedmohyudin.co.uk/. ## Which countries does this eye charity work in? Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia only — the three countries in World Aid Network’s charitable Objects. We do not fund cataract lists in the UK, and we do not run a global eye-hospital network. Please donate if those three countries are where you want an eye charity gift to go. Each country page explains how a partner hospital is paid and which medical council licences the surgeon. Start with the eye surgery programme, then the country you care about most: eye surgery in Pakistan, eye surgery in Indonesia, eye surgery in Malaysia. We do not invent a fourth country because a news cycle moved. Disaster gifts — food, water and shelter — are a different cause, on the emergency appeals index. This cataract charity page funds treatment, not reconstruction. ## How is this different from Sightsavers, Orbis or RNIB? Sightsavers, Orbis and RNIB are large, well-known organisations with their own objects. World Aid Network is a smaller UK CIO that funds partner-hospital bills in three countries. We do not rank “best eye charity” or “best cataract charity”. For filing transparency on registered UK charities, check CharityCompare. Please give where the mandate matches what you want. RNIB is widely known for UK services for people living with sight loss. Sightsavers and Orbis are widely known for international eye-health programmes, including training and prevention at a scale we do not claim. Those are their identities, not ours. If you searched for them by name, go to them. If you searched cataract charity or eye charity and you want a direct hospital-bill gift — typically £200, local surgeons, Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia — this page is that option. We do not operate flying hospitals. We do not build eye hospitals. We do not fund UK private clinics. World Aid Network has no registered charity number yet (Charity Commission application 5290505), so it will not appear as a fully rated CharityCompare profile until registration is granted. ICO reference ZC156579. We will not invent a number. - What a typical gift funds — A partner-hospital cataract operation, about £200 complete - Who operates — Local PMDC, KKI or MMC ophthalmologists — not visiting teams - Countries — Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia only - Research or UK helpline — No. Treatment overseas, not research and not NHS care - Registration — CIO; Charity Commission application 5290505 in progress - Cash to individuals — Never. Grants go to partner hospitals ## Can I sponsor a cataract operation instead of sending glasses? Yes. A gift of about £200 typically covers one complete operation. Please donate money rather than posting spectacles from the UK. Locally purchased lenses fit the patient in front of the surgeon. Old glasses usually do not. The dedicated product page is sponsor a cataract operation. Parcels of spectacles arrive late, may be the wrong prescription, and do nothing for a cloudy lens that needs to be replaced. Please give money, unless a partner has asked for a specific item in writing. If you want to sponsor an operation as a workplace collection, a mosque or church gift, or a memorial, write to info@worldaidnetwork.org. Please still donate on this page or on the Gift of Sight Appeal so the hospital can operate. ## Does an eye charity fund glasses from the UK? This eye charity funds sight-restoring and sight-preserving medical care, mainly surgery. Spectacles collected in Britain are usually the wrong prescription and the wrong solution for a cataract. Please donate the operation, not a drawer of old glasses. Refractive error — needing glasses — is a real cause of poor vision, and some organisations run spectacle programmes well. A dense cataract will not clear because someone posted a pair of readers from London. If the partner ophthalmologist says the lens must come out, the useful gift is the operation. How patients are identified before they go blind is explained on free eye screening camps. Diabetic retinal disease is explained on the diabetic retinopathy charity page. ## Can I give to a cataract charity as Sadaqah or Zakat? You can donate here as a voluntary gift, including Sadaqah. World Aid Network is secular and does not issue a Shariah Zakat ruling. For a labelled Sadaqah cataract gift see the Sadaqah eye surgery page. For Zakat that must follow Islamic rules, donate at Zakat Calculator UK — that site is labelled separately. Muslim donors are welcome. Christian donors are welcome. We never ask a patient’s religion. Charity for humanity is the honest answer to “Muslim charity” and “Christian charity” searches. This page stays the cataract charity and eye charity guide. Our Zakat page explains what a World Aid Network gift can fund, without a ruling. Please ask a qualified scholar if you need a ruling. Please donate on this page if a secular cataract charity gift is what you want. ## Where does my donation go? Gifts pay partner hospitals in Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia against trustee-approved lists. We do not send cash to individuals. Charity Commission registration is in progress (application 5290505). Gift Aid starts when registration is granted. A restricted eye-surgery gift stays with eye care. We do not claim a 100% donation policy. The live legal position is on the registration status page. How grants move is on how we work. ICO reference ZC156579. We will not publish a registered charity number until one is issued. Please give what you can today. You do not have to wait for the number. ## How can I donate to a cataract charity from the UK? Please donate on this page by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. From the United Kingdom, that is the simplest way to fund an operation overseas. You are not paying for NHS cataract lists. You are paying for a patient who cannot afford the same operation where they live. You do not need to travel. You do not need to send spectacles. Keep this cataract charity page, or open the Gift of Sight Appeal, and give. If your workplace, school, mosque or church is collecting, bring the money here. Gift Aid starts when Charity Commission registration is granted. We will tell donors when that happens. Monthly gifts use the monthly giving page, or the monthly option on this form. ## Can I give monthly to an eye charity? Yes. A monthly donation means the next patient is not left waiting for a one-off drive. Please set up a regular gift on this page. Even a small monthly amount helps a hospital keep operating for people who cannot pay. Cataracts do not follow a fundraising calendar. A regular eye charity gift means we can say yes when a partner asks for the next theatre list. Please start a monthly gift at the amount that is comfortable for you. You can change it later. If you would rather give once, that gift is welcome too. Donate today. ## What will a donation provide? - £20: Pre-operative eye assessment and biometry for one patient - £50: Anaesthesia and post-operative antibiotic drops - £100: Half the typical cost of one cataract operation - £200: One complete cataract operation — surgeon, lens, follow-up - £400: Two operations, or both eyes where clinically indicated - £500: A more complex ophthalmic procedure where partners quote this cost ## How to donate to a UK cataract charity Donate to World Aid Network, a UK cataract charity and eye charity. About £200 funds one complete cataract operation. - Stay on this page: This is the cataract charity and eye charity guide. The named appeal is the Gift of Sight Appeal. - Choose an amount: About £200 funds one complete cataract operation. A smaller gift still helps. - Give by card: Pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Optional: give monthly. - Optional: another URL: Sponsor one operation on sponsor a cataract operation, or give as Sadaqah on the Sadaqah eye surgery page. ## Related pages - Best charities to donate to — We do not rank. Tests, then donate if the mandate matches. https://worldaidnetwork.org/blog/best-charities-to-donate-to - Children's charity donation — Donate to help children — cataract, childhood cancer or emergency relief. https://worldaidnetwork.org/blog/childrens-charity-donation - Gift of Sight Appeal — Named year-round cataract checkout — typically £200. https://worldaidnetwork.org/appeal/gift-of-sight - Sponsor a cataract operation — What £200 typically covers for one operation. https://worldaidnetwork.org/sponsor-a-cataract-operation - Eye surgery programme — How cataract funding works in three countries. https://worldaidnetwork.org/eye-surgery - Blindness charity — Preventable blindness programme overview. https://worldaidnetwork.org/blindness-charity - Cataract condition guide — Symptoms, treatment and NHS-style facts. https://worldaidnetwork.org/eye-health/cataracts - Cataract surgery cost — NHS, UK private and charity cost compared. https://worldaidnetwork.org/cataract-surgery-cost - Sadaqah eye surgery — Give a voluntary cataract gift as Sadaqah. https://worldaidnetwork.org/sadaqah-eye-surgery - Diabetic retinopathy charity — Screening, laser and injections where quoted. https://worldaidnetwork.org/diabetic-retinopathy-charity - Free eye screening camps — How patients are found before they go blind. https://worldaidnetwork.org/free-eye-screening-camps - Preventable blindness — WHO-aligned causes and why cataract leads. https://worldaidnetwork.org/preventable-blindness - Eye surgery in Pakistan — PMDC-licensed partner hospitals. https://worldaidnetwork.org/eye-surgery/pakistan - Eye surgery in Indonesia — KKI-licensed partner hospitals. https://worldaidnetwork.org/eye-surgery/indonesia - Eye surgery in Malaysia — MMC-registered partner hospitals. https://worldaidnetwork.org/eye-surgery/malaysia - Christmas Appeal — Seasonal gift of sight — typically £200. https://worldaidnetwork.org/blog/christmas-appeal - Muslim charity & Christian charity — Secular UK charity. Donors of every faith are welcome. https://worldaidnetwork.org/blog/charity-for-humanity-beyond-faith-labels - Mr Mohamed Mohyudin — Consultant ophthalmic surgeon who reviews clinical copy on our eye pages. https://mohamedmohyudin.co.uk/ - How we work — Grants to partner hospitals, not cash to individuals. https://worldaidnetwork.org/how-we-work - Donate to charity — Year-round checkout if you arrived without a keyword. https://worldaidnetwork.org/donate ## Frequently asked questions ### What is a cataract charity UK? A UK organisation that funds cataract surgery for people who cannot pay. World Aid Network is a cataract charity. About £200 funds one complete operation at a partner hospital in Pakistan, Indonesia or Malaysia. Donate on this page or on the Gift of Sight Appeal. ### What is an eye charity? An organisation that funds sight-saving care, UK support, training or research. This eye charity funds partner-hospital treatment overseas, mainly cataract surgery at about £200. It is not a UK helpline and not a research fund. ### How much does a cataract charity donation cost? About £200 for a typical complete operation: surgeon, intraocular lens, anaesthesia, consumables and follow-up. Smaller gifts still help. See How much does a cataract charity donation cost? ### Is this the same as the Gift of Sight Appeal? Same kind of operation; different URL. This page is the cataract charity / eye charity guide. The Gift of Sight Appeal is the named year-round checkout. This URL is not listed on the emergency appeals index. ### Who operates? Locally licensed ophthalmologists in registered hospitals in Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia (PMDC, KKI or MMC). We fund the cost. We do not employ surgeons and do not fly in visiting teams as the standard model. ### Can I sponsor one named patient? A gift of £200 typically covers one operation. Write to info@worldaidnetwork.org if you would like a partner update. We cannot always name a patient for privacy. The product page is sponsor a cataract operation. ### Do you fund glasses instead of surgery? This eye charity funds medical care, mainly surgery. Spectacles from the UK are usually the wrong prescription and the wrong solution for a cataract. ### Will Gift Aid apply? Gift Aid starts when Charity Commission registration is granted (application 5290505). You can donate now. We will contact donors when that happens. ### Is World Aid Network a registered charity? It is a UK Charitable Incorporated Organisation. Registration is in progress (application 5290505). We will not publish a registered number until one is issued. ICO ZC156579. ### Do you send 100% of donations overseas? No. World Aid Network does not claim a 100% donation policy. Gifts fund programme costs at partner hospitals. Read how we work. ### Can I give as Sadaqah or Zakat? Voluntary gifts, including Sadaqah, can be given here or on the Sadaqah eye surgery page. World Aid Network does not issue a Shariah Zakat ruling. For Zakat under Islamic rules, donate at Zakat Calculator UK. ### Who medically reviews this cataract charity guide? Clinical copy is reviewed by Mr Mohamed Mohyudin, a consultant ophthalmic surgeon. Review does not replace a partner hospital’s consent process. Profile: https://mohamedmohyudin.co.uk/. ## How you can help Please donate at https://worldaidnetwork.org/blog/cataract-charity-uk or https://worldaidnetwork.org/donate?cause=eye-surgery&appeal=cataract-charity --- This is general information, not medical advice, published by World Aid Network. Always consult a qualified clinician about your own health.