Source: Newstime Africa/Google
Nairobi: The demand for blood in Mauritius - an island nation of 1.3 million people off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean - has been rising every year as fears of critically low blood banks, yet less people are donating with many people not knowing there blood type, according to Newstime Africa.
“Demand for blood has increased from 20,000 pints to 50,000 pints over the last 20 years. We need it for transfusions, cancer patients and with road accidents which cause a concern this is why we need so much blood; with 50,000 pints a year this would make is feasible to supply the demand”, Subhanand Seegoolam, President of Mauritius Blood Donors Association, articulated to the Africa Review.
According to recent government statistics, Mauritius has approximately 40,000 voluntary donors registered representing 2.5% of the known blood group population who donate blood regularly. Around 3 500 pints are collected each month. In 2011 some 50 000 pints were collected.