THE BLACK community is to receive funding this World Kidney Day, as the government sponsors 35 community projects.

The projects have been granted a share of £600,000 which is to be distributed across black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities in the hopes of addressing the lack of organ donation in the community, particularly among kidney donors.

Funding is also expected to be used to increase blood donation in the black community, which can help treat patients with sickle cell.

The Community Investment Scheme, which is led by NHS Blood and Transplant previously focused on organ donation, but now hopes to drive “understanding and behaviour change” across the board.

For many people waiting to receive organ transplants, the best match will be from a donor of the same ethnic background, because kidney donors and recipients must match in terms of blood group and tissue type.

In the UK, an estimated 2,569 people are currently on the waiting list for a kidney transplant and 580 of them are from an ethnic minority background.

Those from black and minority ethnic backgrounds also wait longer to receive a suitable match than white patients, because of the lack of donations from their communities.

Blood donation and black communities

The stigma around blood donation in the black African and Caribbean community is also rampant, despite sickle cell being one of the fastest growing genetic disorders in the UK and around the world.

Georgelene Elliott, Founder and CEO of Black Blood Matters, said: “Black Blood Matters exists to engage, empower and educate about the importance of blood donation in the Black African and Caribbean community.  

“To us, a representative society is a thriving society; and the health of our community plays an imperative part in enabling that. The only way to ensure that everyone reaches their full potential is to first ensure that everyone is in good health to do so. This means having enough blood donors to make sure those living with sickle cell and other blood disorders in our community have access to the right treatment.”