BACKING has been given in Bolton to a national campaign to increase the number of ethnic minority organ donors.

A major drive to tackle the growing "donor gap" has been launched by UK Transplant, the NHS organisation responsible for matching and allocating donated organs.

Black and Asian people are more than three times more likely to need a kidney transplant than the general population, and their chance of a successful transplant is greater if they can be matched with a donor from the same ethnic background.

But with black and Asian people accounting for fewer than two per cent of deceased organ donors, transplant patients from these communities have to wait up to twice as long as others for a suitable donor to become available.

Donald Gayle is a leading figure in Bolton's Black community and works as a mentor at Respect Counselling.

He said: "Traditionally there has been a lack of understanding in the community through a lack of information, but that is becoming more readily available.

"People need to realise that it could happen to them; it could be their mother, father or children that need an organ, so they should get involved."

The latest figures show that Asian people wait an average of 1,496 days for a kidney transplant and black people an average of 1,389 days. In contrast, white people wait an average of 722 days.

Sheeri Ajibade, a black woman who waited 18 years for a transplant after her kidneys failed when she was aged just 23, said: "It's really sad that people from ethnic minorities don't sign up to the organ donor register because it's made such a difference to my life.

"I think a lot of it is about education and we need to get the message across to people that signing up to the register is nothing to be afraid of, but can make a massive difference to someone's life."

The campaign, entitled Can We Count On You, urges black and Asian people to help tackle this ethnic minority donor gap by signing up to the NHS Organ Donor Register.

There are currently 1,403 black and Asian patients listed for a transplant in the UK.