A professor of paediatrics and child health at  Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, Dominic Osaghae, has said  Nigeria has 47.5m  sickle cell disease  carriers, the highest in the world. He made the disclosure on Thursday while delivering the 15th inaugural lecture of the university.

 

He  called on the Federal Government to set up control programmes across the country to manage the 47.5m  persons suffering from the Sickle Cell Disorders. Osaghae  said, “There are four million sufferers and 47.5 million carriers of sickle cell disorders in Nigeria. Therefore, the country has the highest concentration of victims of sickle cell disease in the world.

 

“Hence, considering the presence of a high carrier rate of the gene (25%) in Nigeria, there is a need for the establishment of control programmes as it has been done in other countries with far less burden of the disease.” The don told the Federal Government  to emulate Edo State which has a sickle cell centre helping  in managing those with the disorder. The  Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof  Lawrence Ezemonye, described the event as a town and gown meeting where ideas and knowledge could be shared.