About
Down Syndrome Nigeria Support is a new UK charity formally launching on March 21st 2011.
March 21st was chosen by Down Syndrome International to mark World Down Syndrome Day with the inaugural day being launched in Singapore in 2006 and given the objective of the charity, this seemed an ideal day for the launch.
The idea for Down Syndrome Nigeria Support started in 2009 when a group of volunteers and professionals recognised the need to reach out to Nigerians and non-Nigerians outside of Africa to inform them of the valuable work being undertaken by Down Syndrome Foundation Nigeria and engage them in supporting that endeavour.
Whilst the recession has hit services for individuals with Down Syndrome worldwide, few people in developed countries are aware of the total lack of provision for people with disabilities in Nigeria nor of the general unwillingness to accept individuals in the community, resulting in many of them being permanently hidden away from society. Add to this the lack of medical provision and the fact that there is an increased incidence of many medical issues in association with Down Syndrome and you can see that the prospect of those born with Down Syndrome in Nigeria is not good.
Down Syndrome Foundation Nigeria a registered charity and non-governmental, not-for-profit association for children and young adults with Down Syndrome, their parents, caregivers, and other interested stakeholders is working to improve the lives of those with Down Syndrome by raising awareness, encouraging acceptance and providing vocational training. They also work to provide support and information for families to enable them to understand the condition and assist in providing appropriate intervention and encouragement so that the youngsters have better opportunities to reach their potential.
The Foundation has also been instrumental in obtaining financial support from corporate and other sponsors, which has enabled them to send several children to India for surgery for heart defects and eye problems as there is no provision in Nigeria. These problems are fairly common in people with Down Syndrome – for instance somewhere in the region of 47% are born with congenital heart defects, which whilst life-threatening, are routinely repaired in developed countries, allowing the individual to go on to lead a healthy life. For this in Nigeria, for most of whom surgery is not an option, the prognosis is not good and many will die in early childhood.
Down Syndrome Nigeria Support aims to raise awareness here in the UK of the situation in Nigeria, to raise funds to be sent to the Foundation in Nigeria to support their work and to work with other organisations to improve the prognosis for children and adults in Nigeria who have Down Syndrome.
