Representative bodies have planned week-long events to celebrate the World Blood Donor Day. Organisers aim to raise public awareness on the importance of donating blood that is often life saving in critical situations.

The World Health Organisation celebrates World Blood Donor Day every year on June 14.

Blood Donors Association, Nepal, is the main organiser of these events in the city. Various other organisations will join and support the association in this noble cause. The programmes will be held from June 8 to 14.

Accordingly, an extensive blood donation programme cum interaction on negative blood group will be held on Saturday. A youth meet on blood donation will be held on June 10, inter-school oratory contest will be organised on June 11 followed by an inter-school art competition on the theme of blood donation is taking place on June 12.

A public awareness rally on blood donation will be held on June 13 followed by a blood donation event, lighting of the traditional lamp lighting and the main celebration on June 14. Association’s acting president Ramesh Dhwaj Basnet said the association would continue to make efforts to prevent a shortage of blood. The association has been working in the blood donation sector since 25 years.

The host country for World Blood Donor Day 2018 is Greece, through the Hellenic National Blood Centre. The global event will be held in Athens on June 14, 2018.

The event serves to thank voluntary, unpaid blood donors for their life-saving gifts of blood and to raise awareness of the need for regular blood donations to ensure the quality, safety and availability of blood and blood products for patients in need.

The theme of this year’s campaign is blood donation as an action of solidarity. It highlights the fundamental human values of altruism, respect, empathy and kindness that underline and sustain voluntary unpaid blood donation systems. We have adopted the slogan, “Be there for someone else. Give blood. Share life”, to draw attention to the roles that voluntary donation systems play in encouraging people to care for one another and generate social ties and a united community.