Messi donates Tk 36cr to Barcelona children’s cancer hospital

Lionel Messi has donated €2.6 million, equivalent to more than Tk 36 crore, to help build a specialised children’s cancer hospital in Barcelona through his charitable foundation.

The donation will support the SJD Pediatric Cancer Center, a €30 million project being developed to provide comprehensive cancer care for children under one roof.

The 5,137-square-metre facility is expected to treat at least 400 children with cancer each year once it becomes fully operational.

Messi’s contribution comes five years after he left Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain, but the Argentine superstar has continued to support humanitarian and healthcare initiatives in the city.

The project is being supported by the Messi Foundation, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and the Barça Foundation, with additional funding from corporate organisations and individual donors, according to reports and FC Barcelona.

The centre aims to bring diagnosis, treatment and other healthcare services for children with cancer together in a single facility, expanding access to specialised care.

Messi has previously supported several child-health initiatives through his foundation, including leukaemia research, medical equipment for a hospital in his hometown Rosario and a child malnutrition programme in Mozambique.

The latest donation adds to the football icon’s long-running philanthropic work away from the pitch.