Wife of the Governor of Abia State and President, Vicar Hope Foundation, Mrs. Nkechi Ikpeazu has called for collaboration between governments on the African continent to reduce the prevalence sickle cell disease.
She made the call in a paper she delivered at the First African Congress on Sickle Cell Disease in Lagos. She observed that SickleCell disease is majorly an African problem and as such stakeholders on the African continent should lead efforts to eradicate the disease.
While acknowledging the fact that some Non-Governmental bodies and a few Governments were doing quite a bit to address the challenge of sickle cell, she was of the opinion that individual efforts would yield better results if there is collaboration across borders.
Mrs Ikpeazu told the gathering that her NGO, Vicar Hope Foundation, had built sickle cell care, counseling and management network that included two hospitals and had encouraged Abia state government to pass a law that would reduce prevalence of the disease expressing the hope that in a few years Abia State, Southeast Nigeria would record near zero incidence of new cases.
She thanked the organizers of the event including Dr. SICKLECELL, the Olusegun Obasanjo Foundation, the Federal Ministry of Health and the Lagos state government for putting the event together pointing out that it has provided a platform for stakeholders to share experiences and knowledge while building new partnerships.
Also speaking, the wife of the Governor of Sokoto State, Mrs. Amina Waziri Tambuwal disclosed that the immense work she has done in her state over the past four years was because she had relatives who had sickle cell disorder and had seen first hand the impact it had on families. She said the awareness about the disease in her state is huge because of the work she is doing through her NGO, the MMAWT Legacy Initiave and called on the governments in the region to roll out sustainable policies that would help roll back the sickle cell disorder.
In his remarks, President Olusegun Obasanjo whose Foundation co-sponsored the event expressed worry that almost 300,000 babies are borne every year with sickle cell disease with Nigeria having the highest number. He expressed concern that governments in the region have not given it the thought to assign sickle cell disease the status of a medical emergency.
The 3-day event which was held at the prestigious Landmark Centre, Victoria Island Lagos attracted delegates from many countries including Nigeria, Namibia, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana, Kenya, India, Germany, United States, United Kingdom, Netherlands, and a large delegation from Kingdom of Buganda led by its Minister for Health.Several speakers spoke on recent progress made in finding a cure for the disease.
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