The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), said it is willing and ready to offer any support required by the National Blood Service Commission (NBSC).
This to enable the NBSC to achieve its mandate of regulating, coordinating, and ensuring “the provision of safe, quality blood and blood products” to all persons who may need such in Nigeria, according to a statement.
The Director, Human Capital and Administration (DHCA), Usman Malah, made the commitment recently when he led the NCC team to receive on behalf of the Executive Vice Chairman, Prof. Umar Danbatta, the Director-General, NBSC, Dr. Omale Amedu, led a delegation to the NCC on a courtesy visit.
Amedu was quoted to have said that the visit was to share information with NCC about the mandate of the NBSC, established under the National Blood Service Commission Act of 2021.
This includes to reduce the prevalence of diseases transmitted through blood, enhance public awareness of blood safety and voluntary non-remunerated blood donation, and rally a committed team of voluntary blood donors, and thereby build a national strategic safe blood reserve.
He also said that while June 14 is designated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as Blood Donor Day, Nigeria has additionally declared December 8, to show commitment to building sufficient blood reserve, considering the significance of blood to human survival and the centrality of blood and blood products among resources used in the production of cancer management drugs.
Nigeria has additionally declared December 8, to show commitment to building sufficient blood reserve, considering the significance of blood to human survival and the centrality of blood and blood products among resources used in the production of cancer management drugs.
Amedu emphasised that NBSC considered NCC as a leading agency in Nigeria, hence the decision to visit NCC as part of NBSC’s sensitization of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and other stakeholders to the need for regular blood donation.
He also commended NCC for its strides in ensuring improved connectivity and remarkable contribution to the digital economy agenda of the government as well as to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Responding, Malah thanked Amedu and his team for the visit, the kind words on the strides of the NCC, and NBSC’s collaborative spirit, which he noted aligned substantially with a strategic objective focus of NCC that speaks to partnership and collaboration with stakeholders.
Malah said the staff of the NCC are public-spirited, and many would be willing to donate blood voluntarily, and promised that recommendations would be made to the Management on the need to institute a special in-house sensitization programme to further explore how to deepen support for the NBSC to enable it to achieve its mandate.
On the NBSC’s request to NCC to explore the use of telecom platforms to disseminate information about activities of NBSC, the DHCA said there are rules governing the telecom sector and the Commission will not want to breach such extant rules, policies, and directions.
Malah however advised the NBSC to reach out to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to agree on how the networks can be used to support the accomplishment of its mandate, which he described as laudable and central to human existence and sustenance.
