Webinar “Outubro Rosa Millennium bim”

Webinar “Outubro Rosa Millennium bim”

Millennium bim marked World Breast Cancer Day with the webinar “Outubro Rosa Millennium bim” (Pink October Millennium bim), held on 20 October on the Zoom digital platform. It was not restricted to Millennium bim employees, and anyone interested in the subject was able to take part.

The event was chaired by Liliana Catoja, the Bank’s Executive Director, and moderated by the distinguished television presenter and social activist Eunice Andrade. It featured testimonies from women who are still battling breast cancer and others who have managed to overcome it. A specialist in this condition spoke about a range of subjects related to the disease, such as the most affected groups, means of prevention, treatment and cure, screening, how to ease fear and anxiety, and techniques to improve immunity, among others.

Felismina Nhantuve is one of the women who form part of the grim statistics of those affected by breast cancer, and she was at the event to recount the fight she has waged. Her testimony was followed by the experience of the actress and television presenter Juju Rombe, a guest who managed to beat and move beyond this disease, which affects not only its direct victims but also all those close to them.

To explain the scale of this scourge worldwide, and to raise awareness of the importance of prevention and early detection of the disease, the panel of guest speakers included Satish Tulsidás, Director of the Oncology Service at Maputo Central Hospital, as well as Guilhermina Bila Mabunda, Technical Unit Director in Millennium bim’s Human Resources Department, who spoke about cases of employees of this institution who have been affected, directly or indirectly, and who had the Bank’s support in easing their suffering.

After the guests’ contributions, there was time for questions and answers, which aimed not only to counter stereotypes and prejudice, but also to inform and advise people on preventing the onset of breast cancer by adopting healthier lifestyles and having regular check-ups.

With the webinar, Millennium bim showed that it intends to establish itself more and more as a universal bank that is committed to this cause, not only with its employees who are facing the disease, but with all Mozambican families.

The opinion of Liliana Catoja, Executive Director of Millennium bim, on the Pink October webinar

What encouraged Millennium bim to embrace this cause?

Millennium bim decided to embrace the subject of breast cancer as part of the commitment it made more than 25 years ago to contribute to the country’s economic and social development. The fight against breast cancer, which is a problem that affects women above all, cuts across the whole of society, which must be made aware of the need to adopt new behaviours and attitudes towards the scourge that the disease represents.

Do you think the webinar managed to convey the intended message?
We believe so, because the testimonies of our special guests, Juju Rombe, who beat breast cancer, and Felismina Nhantuve, who is still fighting to overcome the disease, as well as the information from Dr Satish, drew the attention of Mozambicans in general to the need to pay closer attention to the signs of the condition, encouraging women in particular to seek health services as quickly as possible, before the disease spreads to other parts of the body. They also stressed the need to prevent it through a few daily actions such as self-examination, regular physical activity and a healthy diet, among others.

In your opinion, what is needed for society to look at this subject more seriously?
I think more and more is being done to make people understand the importance of preventing the disease and of detecting it where necessary. There needs to be more dissemination of information about breast cancer. In the past it was quite rare to hear accounts of the disease, but nowadays health authorities, organisations and private institutions have taken it upon themselves to address this subject with increasing frequency and great openness, appealing to the conscience of Mozambicans

We need to hear more testimonies like those of our guests, who, overcoming their tears, their fear and their psychological and emotional depression, decided to show their faces and demonstrate to the whole world that, even though they are going through or have gone through a great scourge, they remain strong women, full of life. Like other diseases, breast cancer is not the end for women. As the resilient women that we all are, in general, we must always fight with courage and determination so that, together, we can beat the disease.
There need to be more awareness-raising sessions across the various media, whether radio, television or digital channels, about this disease, with a view to prevention and timely treatment.

Did you expect a larger number of partners in this initiative, or were expectations exceeded?
Expectations were exceeded, as we had more than 100 participants, both internal (employees) and external (customers and the general public). During the event the participants interacted actively, raising a number of pertinent questions and expressing their appreciation of Millennium bim’s initiative in holding the Pink October webinar. Given the importance of the subject, the two hours allotted for the event were too few; we needed more time, because there is still a great deal to be said about this disease, which worries women more and more, as well as men, since, according to Dr Satish Tulsidás, Director of Oncology at Maputo Central Hospital, the worldwide rate of breast cancer in men is 1%.

What Pink October activities can we expect from your institution in 2022?
As in previous years, Millennium bim intends to continue holding campaigns to raise awareness of breast cancer among society in general, and to hold events related to the subject, as well as to step up promotion of the “Cartão Mulher” (Woman Card) product. This card offers benefits to Millennium bim’s female employees and customers through reimbursement of medical expenses up to a maximum insured sum of MT 75,000.00 per year, with a 10% excess per claim, after 12 months of membership. The Bank hopes to hold more events called Pink October Millennium bim, in digital or in-person format.