Nakasero Blood Bank calls for more support

By Vision Reporter
 
Nakasero Blood Bank has hailed corporate companies that have largely supported the regular blood donation drives and called upon government ministries also to strongly come out in the interest of the same cause.
 
According to the information at Nakasero Blood Bank, blood mobilization has been largely supported by the private sectorthrough their social obligation in addition to a few government departments like Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) education institutions and parliament of Uganda.
 
 Vision Group, Crane Bank and Kiboko Group are the country’s biggest blood donors coupled with other bodies like the Uganda Insurers Association among others.
 
Joyce Nassuuna, a blood donor recruiter at Nakasero Blood Bank prayed that if government ministries consider getting on board, it would go a long way in boosting the donation campaign and the blood deficit the country has always suffered from, would considerably be narrowed.
 
“We hope that if ministries support our campaign, the thousands of employers can donate thousands of blood units and the gesture would serve as a good example to the rest on the target donors,” she said.
 
Nassuuna was speaking to New Vision on the sidelines of a blood donation exercise by employees of Kiboko Group, comprising Abacus Parenteral Drugs, Abacus Pharma (A) Ltd, Kiboko Enterprise and Kiboko Financial Services.
 
“We all know the importance of blood in saving lives, however, the biggest challenge we face is that it is not manufactured, it must be donated by people and this explains why we are making this an annual exercise at our Group. The Group employs over 1000 people and 20% volunteered to donate,” said Ramesh Babu, the Group managing director.
 
He added that in line with the Group’s business centering of dealing in life saving drugs, the entity has also been fully paying university fees for the needy Bachelor of Pharmacy students in different institutions, taking 20 students per year for the last six years, this initiative is undertaken as corporate assistance to the Pharmaceutical Council of Uganda   .