Joint BOD/BOT meeting of the foremost youth-led donor organization underway

The joint BOD/BOT meeting of the foremost youth-led donor organization in Nigeria is underway in a couple of days. This is an all important meeting to help set the stage for re-strategizing the attainment of 100% Voluntary non-Remunerative Blood donation (VNRBD) program in Nigeria. As it is from current reports, Nigeria is barely achieving around 11% VNRBD, a far cry from the set global standard for safe blood supply. This has left majority (about 89%)of the blood available for the nation's health sector to come from family replacement and paid donor programs, which has been acclaimed unsafe with its attendant high risk of transfusion transmissible infections (TTIs).

One major drawback to the execution and actualization of Blood Drive Initiative's well-thought-out mapping of strategies towards getting the nation on the 100% mark, as have been achieved by some other smaller African nations, is funding. The meeting is among others, meant to discuss ways in achieving it set goals without waiting for the National Blood Transfusion service (NBTS) whose major constraints and excuse for inability to sponsor blood drives has been unavailability of funds.

We are convinced of better days ahead in the drive for safe blood in Nigeria with prospective fallout of the meeting.

Blood Drive Initiative ... a drive for life!

Adeluwoye A. Oluwatosin
Executive Director, Operations
Blood Drive Initiative
Nigeria.