Kerecis receives a grant from the SDG Partnership Fund
The medical fish skin company Kerecis has received a 230,000 USD grant from the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs’s SDG Partnership Fund to support the Kerecis Community Project in Cairo. Kerecis will provide medical fish skin products to the Ahl Masr Hospital and will train its doctors in the use of the products to treat serious burns. Ahl Masr specializes in treating trauma and burn victims free of charge.
Burn accidents are common in Egypt where kerosene is used for cooking. Victims are often preschool-aged children and women, and one in three victims who are hospitalized dies from the wounds.
”We believe that our products can save lives and improve the quality of life for those injured in this way,” said Fertram Sigurjonsson, Founder and CEO of Kerecis. “We are grateful for the support from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, which will increase the impact of our project and encourage us to do even more to help people worldwide.”
“Kerecis' contribution will be critical for patients in need, regardless of gender, age or economic status,” said Thordis Kolbrun Reykfjord Gylfsdottir, Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation. “Improved burn treatment with the Kerecis medical fish skin will particularly help women and children, who are most affected by these household fires. The treatment will allow patients to return to work or school faster, reduce long-term impairment and disfigurement, and lead to increased employment and social integration,” she added.
The project is in line with several of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Two years ago, Kerecis selected several SDGs to focus on, including sustainable development, health and well-being, gender equality, decent work and economic growth, and industry, innovation and infrastructure. Kerecis tracks its progress in furthering these goals and reports on its progress annually.
The Kerecis Community Project also seeks to promote innovation, research, and development of the company´s fish skin products for burn treatment in developing countries. The company intends to train doctors elsewhere in Egypt and in neighbouring countries in the use of the fish skin to treat burns, and to develop local commercial partners to help introduce the technology in the region.
Kerecis has conducted multiple clinical trials that have demonstrated the efficacy of its products, which are used to treat diabetic and trauma wounds, including burn wounds, in the United States and several European countries.