Reverend Enoch Nii Narh Thompsom, Vice President of the Ghana Baptist Convention, has pledged the conventions commitment to support the National Blood Service (NBS) through blood donation.

This, he said, would improve the supply of blood to the various hospitals dependent on the NBS. Rev Thompson made the pledged at a blood donation exercise organised by the Convention in Accra on Saturday.

The exercise, which is part of activities to mark the Convention’s 50th anniversary, was organised at four major centers; Tesano Baptist Church, Calvary Baptist at Shiashi, All Souls Baptist, La, and Dansoman Baptist Church and also replicated in other regions across the country.

The anniversary was celebrated under the theme: “Celebrating the Past and Embracing the Future for Greater Kingdom Impact." Rev. Thompson said Ghana had lost and still losing many precious lives due to shortage of blood and that blood donation should be encouraged to save the situation.

He said about 200 people were expected to donate blood at each of the four centers in Accra and other centres across the country, adding “the branches in Tema would also organise theirs on July 12”. Rev Thompson said the convention is putting in some measures to make the exercise a regular one among all its member churches and to initiate a public educational programme to educate the citizenry on the need to donate blood.

He thanked the NBS for responding quickly to their request and members of the church for showing up in their numbers to donate. He appealed to Ghanaians to support the activities of the NBS.

Mr Samuel Nunoo, Deputy Chief Blood Donor Recruitment Office of the NBS, Korle-bu Teaching Hospital, said the hospitals in the country needed a supply of 250,000 units of blood annually.

He said through donation of blood from churches, corporate bodies, individuals, civil society organisations and non-Governmental Organisations, the stock at the NBS was improving and appealed to them to continue to donate to save lives.

Mr Nunoo said the NBS had instituted an educational programme on the importance of blood donation which was making an impact. He called on Ghanaians to cultivate the habit of donating blood to save lives and appealed to other institutions to emulate the example of the Convention.

Rev George Solomon Mallet, Chairman of the Jubilee Planning Committee, said the Convention had among other things, organised clean-up exercises at the Ridge and Psychiatric hospitals in Accra and donated items to the Komfo Anokye Hospital as part of the celebration.