Today is World Vitiligo Day, the global campaign to raise awareness and prevent stigma against this skin disease. In the run-up to the date, one of the premier activists in Nigeria, Ogo Maduewesi, put up several events to commemorate the day.
First, VITSAF (Vitiligo Support and Awareness Foundation), the NGO founded by Ogo Maduewesi produced and distributed a print and online campaign with Enam Heikeens as their ambassador and spokesperson. Enam Heikeens is a model and has taken part in beauty pageants.
Also, the group also organized a charity walk in Enugu to raise awareness about Vitiligo. The color for this years World Vitiligo day is purple and the theme is Black or White.
Also, there was the re-launch of a Ogo's fashion label called Vogo Designs. Vogo Designs specialises in casual dresses and bags cut and sewn from local Nigerian fabrics. According to Wakabout Blog, Pelu Awofeso who was at the event said,
"An even more remarkable activity was that the new collections were modelled exclusively by individuals who have vitiligo in various degrees and the star of the evening was Ghanaian born Enam Heikeens. When they eventually got on the runway, the guests were ecstatic and the mood in the room brightened up several notches."
PS - Ogo Maduewesi was pictured in the CNN feature article on World Vitiligo Day. She is in a slideshow of artist Stephanie Corne's portraits of people with vitiligo who attended the 2013 World Vitiligo Day conference in Detroit.
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