Rwandans urged to donate blood

Rwandans have been urged to donate blood in order to save lives.  The Donor Selection Officer in Rwanda Biomedical Centre/National Centre for Blood Transfusion, Yvette Namahoro, made the call during MTN’s annual blood drive.

Sunday, December 18, 2011
MTN staff donating blood on Friday. The Sunday Times / J. Mbanda

Rwandans have been urged to donate blood in order to save lives.  The Donor Selection Officer in Rwanda Biomedical Centre/National Centre for Blood Transfusion, Yvette Namahoro, made the call during MTN’s annual blood drive.

"Some Rwandans still don’t think it is important to donate blood yet there are many people in hospital that urgently need this blood to stay alive,” Namahoro said.

In order to change this perception, the National Centre for Blood Transfusion was carrying out a number of campaigns on local radios encouraging blood donations, she told The Sunday Times.

The CEO of MTN, Khaled Mikkawi, thanked his staff for donating blood.

"This is part of our corporate social responsibility”.

According to statistics from the Rwanda Biomedical Centre/National Centre for Blood Transfusion website, 40,982 units of blood were collected in 2010, an increase of 415 units from the previous year.

maria.kaitesi@newtimes.co.rw