Accident victims, mothers in labor, anemic patients and other patients that may need a blood transfusion to save their lives will now have another chance at life following a successful blood donation drive by Nile Breweries Limited in partnership with Uganda Red Cross Society (URCS) and the Uganda Blood Transfusion Service. The three days campaign that happened last week added more than 1039 units of blood to the national blood bank. An impressive 653 blood units were collected on the first day, 14th June 2022, 271 units on the second day and 115 units on the third day bringing the total to 1,039 blood units, over and above the 800 blood units’ target that was anticipated by the organizers.
These units were collected from different locations in Mbarara, Jinja and Kampala including Constitutional Square, Nakasero Market, and New Taxi Park in Kampala, Njeru Town Council and Total in Jinja and Kiyanja, Opposite Stanbic Bank, Opposite Agip in Mbarara. While commenting on the milestone, Onapito Ekomoloit, the Legal and Corporate Affairs Director, Nile Breweries Limited thanked all Ugandan that donated blood for standing in solidarity with fellow Ugandans who will need the blood to save their lives. “More than 1000 people had our call and responded. We do not take their commitment and sacrifice for granted and I would like, on behalf of NBL and all our partners to thank everyone who participated in this noble cause, we are very proud of you,” he said.
Speaking at the blood donation drive in Kampala, George J Kanyihamba, a repetitive blood donor volunteer with Uganda Red Cross said he was honored to donate blood as it was an opportunity to give another person a chance to have a life. “This is my 11th time donating blood. When I give blood, it’s like giving a life to another human being which makes me feel great because I know I am doing a noble cause. And I also know that at one point, I or any of my relative may need this blood to save their life. I call upon all Ugandans that are able to give blood to do it because we are the only source of this precious lifesaving resource which cannot be manufactured,” he said.
According to Dr. Charles Olaro, the Director in charge of Clinical Services in the Ministry of Health, Uganda requires about 400,000 units of blood annually, at least 1% of the country’s population in form of blood units. Rogers Nsereko Kawuma, the Kampala Metropolitan Traffic Police Commander urged Ugandans to focus on preventative mentions like following traffic rules to avoid accidents that may put them in critical conditions but also urged Ugandans to donate blood to save lives; “You will never understand the problem of not being able to find blood until such a time when, God forbid, it’s your loved ones. So, we need to ensure that our blood supply doesn’t go empty, because then that will mean more loss of lives.”
Onapito also revealed that the blood donation campaign would enable the company draw attention to road safety during this period, since accident victims have been identified as among patients needing blood most. Uganda Traffic Police statistics show 118 people were killed in road crashes between April 24 and May 4 this year alone. “In response to the call to the Second Decade of Action for Road Safety from the United Nations, our mother company, ABInBev has put in motion plans and actions to improve road safety around the world,” Onapito said. “We want to help achieve the goal of reducing road traffic deaths and injuries by at least 50% between 2021– 2030,” he said.
NBL also donated a bar of soap to each blood donor at all the locations to assist in promoting hygiene, amid the high commodity prices. The drive was in commemoration of World Blood Donor Day 2022 themed “Donating blood is an act of solidarity. Join the effort and save lives” which aims to draw attention to the roles that voluntary blood donations play in saving lives and enhancing solidarity within communities.