Haima Health Initiative (HHI) is a social enterprise that organises monthly blood donation drives and emergency response for patients in need of blood transfusions across six states in Nigeria. HHI addresses the shortage of blood supply for persons in need of blood due to inadequate voluntary blood donations, the prohibitive cost of acquiring blood and the absence of a centralised blood banking system in Nigeria. Through a 24-hour telephone helpline, WhatsApp, and online database, HHI connects voluntary blood donors to patients in need of blood.
The Founder of HHI Bukola Bolarinwa, is a lawyer and Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) advocate. As a person living with SCD, Bukola sometimes requires blood transfusions, and this inspired her to find a solution to a hardship she also encountered. She started HHI to address the shortage of blood supply for persons in need of blood due to inadequate voluntary blood donations, the excessive cost of blood and the absence of a centralised blood banking system in Nigeria.
Since its inception in 2015, HHI has registered over 4,000 voluntary blood donors and supported the collection of over 4,500 pints of blood. Haima responds to over five hundred blood requests every year with its advocacy that reaches over 10,000 people online.
HHI is among fourteen other Youth Ventures Programme (YVP) grant recipients selected to receive project funding and technical support from The Queen’s Commonwealth Trust (QCT). Through the YVP, QCT’s support will go towards rolling out the Haima Mobile Project, which will facilitate the delivery of blood from blood banks to patients in hospitals at a minimal cost in Lagos and Abuja cities of Nigeria.
