Security Services Donate Blood in Southern Moroccan City of Laayoune

Rabat – The General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) in the southern city of Laayoune organized a blood drive under the theme: “Stay at home, we will donate our blood for you.” Police contributed to address the alarming low reserve of blood that Moroccan authorities recently reported.

The initiative comes within a partnership between the DGSN and the regional office of the National Center for Blood Transfusion (CNTS) and adds to nationwide efforts to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The DGSN’s blood drive push comes after CNTS officials announced a critical lack of blood reserves on March 24.

The CNTS has taken strict measures to ensure the complete safety of donors amid the mounting fear of COVID-19 transmission.

On Monday, March 23, CNTS Director Dr. Mohamed Benajiba told Arab News that blood supplies are running dangerously low, emphasizing that the lives of thousands of patients across Morocco depend on blood transfusions.

Benajiba said that only 200 Moroccans donated blood that day. Hospitals need a minimum of 800 donations per day to provide patients with appropriate treatment.

Most Moroccans are reluctant to make blood donations in light of the exceptional circumstances of the COVID-19 spread.

On March 19, Morocco’s DGSN, with the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST), made a financial contribution of MAD 40 million ($4 million) for the Special Fund for the Management and Response to COVID-19.

The DGSN’s in-kind blood donations align with the directorate’s demonstrated solidarity in response to the spread of the virus.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explained on March 24 that transfusions of plasma, from COVID-19 patients who have recovered, successfully treated some cases.

This could explain the urgent need for blood in Morocco.

This Chinese practice blood as a potential asset in reducing the COVID-19 fatalities in Morocco, which reached a total of 36 as of March 31.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 infections in Morocco stands at 602.