Kenya: Nationwide debate on organ trafficking

DW (English)

DW's investigation into organ trafficking in Kenya has sparked a nationwide debate. Correspondent Sella Oneko sheds light on what the Kenyan government is doing, while Dianna Hawker in Johannesburg and Favour Ubanyi in Lagos offer additional perspectives.

Transcript

00:00Following the DW investigation into young people being paid to sell their kidneys, it

00:03became a huge topic of conversation in Kenya.

00:06It resulted in a government investigation and put a stop to organ transplants in the

00:10hospitals involved in the scandals.

00:12A committee found that Kenya lacks a proper regulatory framework, proper monitoring of

00:16the hospitals and care for organ donors.

00:19They also found that most kidney donors were young Kenyan men and that records often missed

00:23data like nationality and residency, raising ethical concerns.

00:28Burials in Kenya are still very traditional, which means that families want to bury their

00:32loved ones with their bodies intact.

00:35The first successful kidney transplantation was done in Lagos back in 2000.

00:41And since then, more than 770 kidney transplants have been carried out in hospitals across the

00:48country.

00:49But here's what is interesting.

00:51Almost all of these transplants come from living donors, that is people who are still alive,

00:57usually family or close friends.

00:59Across West Africa, only a few countries have transplant programs at all.

01:04Even then, it's usually just a few hospitals in major cities.

01:09Legally, organ donation is allowed in Nigeria.

01:12The National Health Act since 2014 says donation is legal, but selling or buying organs is a crime.

01:20Did you know that the first ever heart transplant was performed by a South African doctor named

01:27Chris Barnard in 1967?

01:30Despite this pioneering history, South African medical professionals are worried that there

01:35simply aren't enough donors in South Africa.

01:38There are between 4,000 and 6,500 people awaiting organs each year.

01:44A study published in the South African Medical Journal notes that South Africa has some of

01:49the lowest organ donor numbers in the world.

01:52This means that in many cases, doctors have to approach potential donors' families directly

01:58and request consent.

01:59And in most cases, the families say no.

02:02South African doctors believe there is a potential solution to this problem.

02:06They say the law needs to be changed to make it easier for patients to give direct consent,

02:11to have their organs donated.

02:13Remember, one organ donor can save seven lives.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended