20 Airtel staff give blood to save life

Thu, 30 Mar 2017 11:55:10 +0000

By SANDRA MACHIMA

THE ‘‘Give blood, give life’’ campaign has kicked off at Airtel Zambia, with the company conducting its first staff blood donation at Lusaka’s University Teaching Hospital as part of its corporate social responsibility.

Airtel head of corporate communication and Government relations Ms Yuyo Kambikambi said hospitals and clinics were often short of blood and yet it was a key factor for saving mothers in childbirth as well as for other emergencies.

She said Airtel had taken its role as a CSR leader in the country seriously and was committed to ensure the health, development and well-being of the communities in which they operate.

“We want to be more   active   than   reactive,   hence   the partnership   with   the   blood   bank   for members of staff to donate blood, no matter how little, at least every quarter.

“In order to make the health projects more relevant to our business, we have continued to render support to not just the largest hospital in the country, the University Teaching Hospital, but also many other health centres across the country and the blood donation events are under the employee volunteer programmes that we run as Airtel,” she said.

Ms Kambikambi said the blood donation involved 20 Airtel members of staff who volunteered to save lives.

And University Teaching Hospital donor services manager Dia Kumwenda disclosed that this year’s target of collecting blood was at more than 150,000 units of blood to help those in need.

Ms Kumwenda said she was pleased that Airtel had always been supportive in saving lives by encouraging their staff to donate blood.

She said the 20 units that had been donated by Airtel staff would go a long way in assisting the children in the various health centres.

“We would like to encourage other companies to emulate Airtel and come forward to donate blood so that the hospital can meet the demand of the needy,” she said.