Missing Kenyan children featured in Roma social media campaign found. Photo/BBC
NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 17 – Two Kenyan children who featured in a missing child social media campaign launched by Roma have been found and returned to their families.
The Italian club featured a picture of each child alongside the announcements of Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Chris Smalling signing for them.
Four children have been found as part of a campaign Roma launched in July.
A girl from London and a boy from Belgium were found after the arrivals of Mert Cetin, and Davide Zappacosta.
Armenia midfielder Mkhitaryan, 30, joined Roma on a season-long loan after a disappointing 18-months at Arsenal.
He scored on his Serie A debut, with his new side beating Sassuolo 4-2 – the same day a 13-year-old Kenyan boy was found.
🎙️ ‘Mkhitaryan now… through… MKHITARYAN!! On his debut!’ pic.twitter.com/GHYJXU0fuC
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) September 17, 2019
Maryana Munyendo, @missingchild_ke director: “Through our partnership with #ASRoma, we lit a big candle of hope to guide these children back home to their families & we’re thankful to the players that allowed the children to feature in the campaign alongside their announcements.” pic.twitter.com/cfDtpfMGi6
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) September 17, 2019
🛑A fourth missing child has been found! 🛑#ASRoma have today been informed by @missingchild_ke that an 8-year-old Kenyan girl featured in the @ChrisSmalling transfer announcement video has been found safe.
On Sunday, another Kenyan child, a 13-year-old boy was also found safe pic.twitter.com/CnQOmkuhEU
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) September 17, 2019
An eight-year-old Kenyan girl featured along with centre-back Smalling’s move from Manchester United was the latest to be found “safe and well”.
“The club were informed by the charity Missing Child Kenya that an eight-year-old girl, who was pictured in the video to announce Chris Smalling’s arrival from Manchester United, has now been reunited with her family,” said a Roma statement.
The three-time Serie A winners have partnered with child charities – the US-based National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), Telefono Azzurro and Missing Child Kenya – for the summer initiative.
It is inspired by rock band Soul Asylum’s music video for their 1992 song Runaway Train, which highlighted the faces and names of missing children, and similar to those printed on millions of milk cartons in the USA during the 1980s and 90s.
At the time of the launch, Paul Rogers, head of strategy at Roma, said: “We want to use the viral nature of social media transfer announcements to help raise awareness for missing children.”
