Nigeria, June 14 -- KADUNA - As part of activities to mark World Blood Donor Day, the Beacon of Transformative and Inclusive Development Centre (BEACON) has appealed to Nigerians to actively participate in voluntary blood donation, citing a dire national shortage that continues to endanger lives.

Mrs. Abigail Olatunde, Executive Director of the organisation, made the appeal in a statement issued on Saturday in Kaduna. She decried the widening gap between blood demand and supply in Nigeria, noting that while the country requires approximately 1.8 million pints of blood annually, less than 500,000 pints are currently being collected.

"This leaves over 1.3 million Nigerians unable to access life-saving blood when they need it most," Olatun...