Arab League Stresses Importance of Strengthening National Blood Donation Campaigns

Cairo, June 13 (QNA) - The Arab League stressed Monday the importance of awareness of the need to donate blood and strengthening the national and local campaigns in this regard.
In a statement on the occasion of World Blood Donor Day, Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the Social Affairs Sector of the Arab League, Ambassador Haifa Abu Ghazaleh stressed the need to - once again- shed light on the support of national blood transfusion services, blood donor organizations, and other non-governmental organizations to enhance blood donation programs.
She said that the world celebrates, on June 14th each year, World Blood Donor Day. The World Health Organization (WHO) has chosen this slogan for World Blood Donor Day 2022 "Donating blood is an act of solidarity. Join the effort and save lives," which highlights the importance of blood donation in saving lives and strengthening solidarity within societies.
She explained that this day is an appropriate opportunity to call on Arab countries and national health authorities to work on providing sufficient resources to increase blood collection from voluntary and unpaid donors and manage the available bloodstock and transfer it to those who need it.
She added that the Secretariat General of the Arab League, in cooperation and coordination with the Arab Authority for Blood Transfusion Services AABTS, which is chaired by Morocco, is about to hold the 20th meeting of the AABTS on June 14 and 15, 2022, in Marrakesh, which was chosen to coincide with the day of the celebration of World Blood Donor Day.
She noted that the AABTS is a subsidiary body of the Arab Health Ministers Council, and was established in accordance with Arab Health Ministers Council resolution No. 118, issued by the fourth regular session of the Arab Health Ministers Council held in March 1979.
The meeting's agenda includes many topics, including the review and discussion of reports from Arab member states regarding procedures and regulations taken by these states for attracting blood donors during the COVID-19 pandemic. (QNA)