The State's eye clinic at Windhoek Central Hospital currently has about 1300 people on its waiting list for cataract surgery.
Only four eye specialists are employed by the state, with two based in the north, while the other two are in Windhoek.
Sight restoration is a mission that is easy, but it can be harder, owing to insufficient and readily available resources to perform surgery.
Ophthalmologist Dr Ernst van der Merwe is one of those who has been restoring the hope of the blind and he tells us, the road has been bumpy.
The eye clinic at the Windhoek Central Hospital is functional, however, there is a need for a fully functional theatre with specialized machinery, he says.
The equipment needs specific plastic tubing and hand pieces to function, including specialized microscopes, blades and specific medications and products to be used during the operating process.
He cautions that, if any needed tools are not available, the operation cannot take place.
The Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) has over the years found it challenging to provide these very critical tools.
This has resulted in the ballooning of the waiting list, postponing the hope of those who have been for years waiting to see clearly again.
"The availability of stock and consumables and many things we need for operations, one cataract, we need a lot of equipment, and if all these things are not present, then we can't do an operation, and it is a big struggle to make sure everything is available" he added
Only two of the four specialists are full-time.
Dr Helena Ndume despite being retired, is still employed on a part-time basis, rendering her services to the state.
It is a mission that the recipient of the United Nations Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela Prize cannot sail away from easily because of her passion for humanity.
A lack of enabling facilities however can be a stumbling block.
Dr Ndume says the long waiting list could have been a thing of the past, should the government have bought the much-needed supplies directly from the manufacturer.
"A lens that we put in the patient is N$180, but the middlemen, who are tendering, are giving us N$600. People! How can we treat everyone? I think these things must stop! And I urge people at procurement, ministry of finance to start getting things directly from the companies, it is not only Ophthalmology, it is all over. Let us get directly from the supplier, and help our poor people".
Attributing to that, the facility also simply does not have enough equipment, staff, and consumables.
The Eye Clinic carries out between 6 to 10 operations per day and that is just surgeries on cataracts.
The medical staff, on top of that, must also be available for trauma patients and operate on other critical surgeries such as operations for children with glaucoma and squint problems.
Cataract patients are booked based on the severity of their cataracts.
Those placed on the waiting list typically form part of patients with moderate to severe visual impairment but who can still function and wait.
Despite these challenges, Dr's Ndume and Van Der Merwe remain cognizant that the authorities are pressed with equally important needs in other sectors, but are confident getting rid of the broker will drastically cushion the challenges at hand.