Fidelity Bank. Photo Credit- Financial Watch
In commemoration of the 2018 World Sickle Cell Day, Fidelity Bank plc has collaborated with a coalition of Sickle Cell NGOs on awareness campaign which aims at reducing the number of people living with sickle cell.
The coalition of sickle cell NGOs in Nigeria, comprises of well meaning Nigerians who have come together to create awareness about the disorder. They include Sickle Cell Foundation Nigeria (SCFN), Sickle Cell Advocacy and Management Initiative (SAMI), Genotype Foundation, Tony May Foundation, Sickle Cell Aid Foundation (SCAF), Couple and Kids Social Initiative, Nirvana Initiative, Noah’s Ark Foundation for Sickle Cell, DABMA Sickle Cell Foundation, Marvel Sickle Cell Foundation, Soulage Foundation and Avo Eri Health Foundation.
As a joint activity, the coalition is organizing, the Red Umbrella charity Walk to create awareness about the disorder at a community level, in celebration of the world sickle cell day 2018, scheduled to hold on Saturday 16th June 2018 in Lagos. The walk will traverse the route from Teslim Balogun Stadium via Ojuelegba to Itire Road, to Ogunlana Drive and back to the Stadium via Masha Road.
This would be the 9th World Sickle Cell Day Celebration since UN General Assembly declared June 19 World Sickle Cell Day. Every year since 2008, the world has paused on this date to remember people affected by sickle cell disorder.
Photo Credit- Nigerian Oracle
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos, Chris Nnakwe, head, human resources recruitment/CSR and sustainability, Fidelity Bank said, “We intend to be part this journey of reducing the number of people living with sickle cell through awareness and education. We want to make it an annual event and every year we will see how to get involved as part of our contribution for healthy living in the country”.
Nnakwe was concerned that about 150,000 children that are born with sickle cell disorder annually in Nigeria, 75 percent of them do not live to see their 5th birthday.
In her opening remark, Toysin Adeola , chairperson of the Coalition said that Nigeria is the country with the largest burden of sickle cell disorder in the whole world, with a large population of over 40 million Nigerians being healthy carriers of the sickle cell gene, and this number of carriers far exceeds the total number of every other affected African country and indeed, of several of them put together.She commended Fidelity Bank for the partnership and asked other corporate organisation to emulate the bank.
