Twelve fertility-challenged couples have been enrolled in the Wilson O. A. R. Initiative/Fertpromax Fertility Clinic partnership for couples who are in search of children but cannot afford the full cost of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) services.

The partnership, which offers up to 70 per cent financial aid to low-income earners and those who have been waiting for children for at least, ten years, was initiated at the behest of Hon Olajide Rainy Wilson as part of his 50th birthday celebration.

The Wilson O. A. R. Initiative, which is a corporate social responsibility platform inaugurated at his birthday party held in Kigali, Rwanda recently, is in recognition of the enormous financial challenges faced by numerous low-income earning couples battling infertility in Nigeria.

“This initiative, although prompted by the realisation of the huge access impediments facing fertility-challenged couples especially those in the low-income pool, is meant to widen access to IVF services so they can also share in the joyful moments of parenthood,” said Wilson at the inauguration of the Initiative.

According to him, “cost is the biggest single impediment to the access of IVF services in Nigeria as a single cycle costs between three to 15 million naira which is unaffordable to the average Nigerian. And to make matters worse, IVF services are largely offered by the private sector and are not covered by the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), the government-owned HMO largely focusing on civil servants in the federal and state MDAs.”

He stated that the partnership received more than 4,000 entries from across Nigeria and a few other West African countries within the two-week window open for registration.

The management of the Initiative screened the entries to determine their qualification, based on their financial standing, extent of their waiting for the miracle of the womb, suitability of their medical conditions and their willingness to abide by the physical demands of the medial procedure.

“At the end of the initial screening exercise based on their entries, we shortlisted over 20 entries and invited the prospects for further screening, from which we selected the 12 couples that have begun the treatment procedure. It should be noted that the treatment offer is tailored to the medical needs of the candidates – ovum/sperm donation and surrogacy options and covers the various aspects of treatment – from sperm and egg extraction to medication, tests, IVF proper and embryo transfer,” Wilson further stated.

Wilson, who is also the Managing Director of the Fertpromax Fertility Clinic, also noted that this initiative, which is his give back platform to the society that has been good to him, will run one cycle of this initiative this year but hopes to run two cycles in the subsequent years.

He called on those who could not be accommodated in this inaugural cycle and others who fall into the target group to feel free to apply for the programme when the portal for open for subsequent cycles.