Friday, 26 August 2022: The Aga Khan University’s Outreach Health Network has signed an MoU with the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) to help provide screening and treatment for Hepatitis C in the communities OGDCL operates in.
Through this one-year collaboration with OGDCL, AKU Outreach Health Network will establish Hepatitis-C elimination camps at 24 locations across the country, with 24 initial and 72 follow-up camps which will provide high-quality and holistic Hepatitis-C treatment to patients in the communities where OGDCL operates in.
The donation agreement was signed by Shagufta Hassan, VP and CFO, Aga Khan University, Asif Fancy, Chief Resource Development Officer, and Abdur Raziq Khattak, Manager CSR, OGDCL at a ceremony held at AKU’s Stadium Road campus on Friday, August 19.
Welcoming this new partnership with AKUH, Mr. Abdur Raziq Khattak, Manager CSR, OGDCL commented that OGDCL is committed to conducting business accompanied by great social responsibility towards all stakeholders involved in the process.
Hepatitis C is a liver infection, caused by the Hepatitis-C virus. It is often called a “silent killer” because often there are no symptoms till the disease starts damaging the liver, leading to liver cirrhosis and cancer. Pakistan bears the second highest burden of the disease globally, and it is estimated that 5 percent of the country’s population is infected with the virus. While antiviral medicines can cure more than 95% of these patients, access to screening, diagnosis, and treatment is low in most parts of the country.
Through the generous support of donors, the Aga Khan University Outreach Health Network’s Hepatitis–C Elimination Programme aims to improve accessibility for all, especially, Zakat mustehiq and other financially challenged patients.