Nominated Senator Farhiya Haji has challenged counties to deal with the blood crisis in the country through their allocations.
“Let us bring our governors to account so that they use the money we gave them properly so that more wananchi can access medical care ,” Haji said.
Speaking during the fifth Ladies Leadership and Accountability Conference at a hotel in Mombasa on Wednesday, the senator said women a the most affected by the blood crisis.
“First of all, the blood crisis affects more women than men because of the natural process of giving birth and in that process, they lose a lot of blood and die,” Haji said.
The country has been facing a blood crisis since the Blood Donation Program that was funded by the US government was stopped. Pepfar stopped providing Sh2 billion annual funding from September 2019
This has left friends and relatives to run online and word of mouth campaigns for blood donation.
“Even if it means we do a fundraiser, if there is no other funding, that problem needs to be sorted immediately. We cannot afford to lose so many women and so many other people who are sick and don't have someone to donate blood," she added.
She noted that many people are willing to donate blood but there are no sufficient blood banks to store it.
“Let’s have a donation drive. All we need to do is the counties to have blood banks where this blood can be stored."
"I am sure Kenyans are willing to donate blood. I am also willing to donate as I dod in the last blood drive in Wajir,” she said.
