A blood donor in South Sudan.
Courtesy image
At least 70 people donated blood during a campaign organized by Médecins Sans Frontières–France (MSF-F) in collaboration with the State Ministry of Health in Aweil, Northern Bahr el Ghazal State, on Sunday.
The exercise, which began at Winner Chapel, was aimed at
boosting blood supplies for patients in need, including pregnant women,
children, and victims of serious accidents admitted at Aweil Civil Hospital.
Santino Garang Kuan, Director of the Hospital Blood Bank,
said the donations will help save lives of patients in critical condition.
“We would like to see large numbers, 100, 70, or 50 people, coming
forward to give blood. This is a difficult time, malaria is paramount. Next
Sunday we are going to Saint Daniel,” Kuan said.
He noted that the campaign will continue throughout the
month and beyond, especially during the malaria season and farming period, when
health cases are expected to rise.
Donors who took part in the exercise said they were
motivated by a desire to save lives.
Ajok Garang Ajiing said they responded to a call to support
patients in need. “We were asked to help patients in need of blood, and we
offered ourselves to save lives,” she said.
Abak Deng described blood donation as an act of blessing and
solidarity. “Giving blood to our brothers, sisters, mothers, and children
admitted at the hospital is a blessing from God,” she said.
Santino Nyang Garang encouraged more people to participate
after medical screening. “You should come for a blood test, and if it is good,
donate to our people in hospital. There is nowhere else to get blood except
from ourselves,” he said.
Donors pledged to continue participating in future drives, stressing that saving lives is a shared responsibility, with many saying “life rotates, today for you, tomorrow for others.”