By Simon Deng
The South Sudan Red Cross (SSRC) has called on citizens to embrace voluntary blood donation to address persistent shortages in health facilities nationwide. This initiative aims to ensure patients have access to life-saving blood when needed.
Speaking in Juba on Thursday, Peter Loruba, the SSRC Juba branch’s Communication and Volunteer Management Officer, highlighted the organization’s ongoing voluntary blood donation campaigns. He urged greater public participation to strengthen the country’s blood supply.
“We encourage everyone, South Sudanese or not, to embrace donating blood,” Loruba stated during a training session for journalists organized by the SSRC in Juba. “Blood donation drives are a key focus for us.”
He added, “With support from our partners, we are assisting the National Blood Transfusion Services in mobilizing blood donors. Blood donation is a project we, as the Red Cross, manage directly.”
Loruba revealed that the SSRC has supported the National Blood Transfusion Services for over a decade, emphasizing the growing emergency of blood transfusion needs.
“We have been conducting blood donation drives for over 10 years now. The number of people who need blood out there is immense, truly unimaginable,” Loruba explained. “We shouldn’t wait until a loved one is in a sick bed.”
He concluded, “We want people to be proactive about blood donation, to go out there voluntarily and donate, because each time you donate voluntarily, you are saving a life.”
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