The Sickle Cell Hope Alive Foundation (SCHAF) hosted its annual Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) Awareness Program on Wednesday, 24th September 2025, at the Apex Event Center, Agodi Gate, Ibadan. The program, themed “Sickle Cell Disease Prevention: Youths as a Vehicle of Change,” drew widespread participation and underscored the vital role of young people in advancing awareness and prevention.
Ahead of the event, selected secondary schools across Ibadan received the SCHAF Sickle Cell Disease Handbook 1 for training on SCD education and control. Their knowledge was tested in an oratory contest featuring Bishop Phillips Academy, Army Barracks Secondary School, Isabatudeen Girls’ Grammar School, Urban Day Grammar School, and Loyola College.
The program attracted nearly 1,000 participants, including 240 students from 10 secondary schools, 300 corps members, 60 students from the College of Health Sciences, Eleyele and Health Information Management, UCH, 17 teachers, 50 SCD warriors and caregivers, media representatives, SCHAF resource persons, and volunteers.
Dignitaries in attendance included SCHAF Founder Prof. Adeyinka Falusi, representing the Chairman, Prof. Abiodun Falusi. Also present were Prof. Taiwo Kotila (representing the Provost, College of Medicine, UCH), Dr. Oluwasola Sesan (representing the CMD, UCH), and Mrs. Olayiwola A.O. (representing the Commissioner for Information). Distinguished academics such as Prof. Olaitan Soyanwo and Prof. Chinedum Peace Babalola, immediate past Vice-Chancellor of Chrisland University, Abeokuta, also graced the occasion.
The oratory contest was keenly contested, with prizes awarded to the top three schools and commendation awards to all participants. Unilever Nigeria Limited supported the program with generous product donations to students, corps members, and warriors. Adult warriors also received a three-month supply of routine medication.
Nigeria bears the highest burden of SCD in the world, and awareness remains a key strategy for its prevention and control. SCHAF is actively engaging youths in the formal sector across Oyo State, with plans to expand to other states and into the informal sector, ensuring knowledge cascades to every community nationwide.
