The Belgian ambassador to Rwanda, Marc Pecsteen, along with employees of the Belgian Development Cooperation gathered at the National Centre for Blood Transfusions (NCBT) yesterday to donate blood.

The event followed the centre’s call for more blood donations to boost its blood bank.

"It’s something everyone can and ought to do,” said Pecsteen after donating blood.

 Although he has donated blood in Belgium before, this is the first time the envoy has donated blood in Rwanda.

"It’s the first time we are doing this, but we intend to do it regularly,” he said. 

Pecsteen promised to bring more organisations on board.

In Rwanda, over 30,000 patients need blood transfusion each year. Fifty per cent of these are children under five years of age.

In order to meet these needs, about 40,000 blood units must be collected annually. However, because blood collection rates are so unpredictable, this need is rarely met.

Blood transfusions are crucial, said Peter Kimenyi, the director of the NCBT. He said blood donation helps different people, ranging from mothers who bleed during child birth and children who suffer from malaria, to accident victims.

"Sometimes when people donate blood, they do not realise that  what they have done can save lives. But for us, we work at the hospital and know what blood can do. We see people on the brink of losing their life only to be saved by blood,” he said.

The Belgian initiative also aims at encouraging the Rwandan community to donate blood regularly. Blood donors in Rwanda can donate up to four times per year, but only 49 per cent of donors give twice a year on average.

"Some people do not donate blood because of fear of knowing their HIV status,” said Prudence Uwabakurikiza, a representative of the Belgian development cooperation. 

Pecsteen said donating blood is a good way to bridge divides. 

"White or black or yellow or any other skin colour, inthe end we all have the same blood,” he said.