GOSPEL artiste Mathias Mhere has become the latest musician to voluntarily offer his services to the National Blood Service Zimbabwe (NBSZ), a non-profit organisation responsible for the provision of safe blood and other blood-related products in the country.
BY WINSTONE ANTONIO
The Favour hit-maker joins a star-studded line-up of fellow artistes including Sandra Ndebele, Tryson Chimbetu, Jah Prayzah, Bob “Headmaster” Nyabinde, Fungisai Mashavave and Blessing Shumba who are already involved in blood donation campaigns across the country.
Mhere told NewsDay that he has offered to participate in NBSZ blood donation initiatives through music.
“It is our role as public personalities to be involved and championing such life-changing initiatives of blood donation co-ordinated by NBSZ. Society also looks up to us musicians as their role models, so we must be able to join hands and encourage them to embrace a culture of donating blood,” Mhere said.
Award-winning music promoter Partson Chimbodza of Chipaz Promotions has also partnered with NBSZ to facilitate the engagement of several artistes from different genres for the blood donation campaigns.
“Our artistes are role models in society who can be easily understood and they must create a voice in such special campaigns that helps to save human lives including their own, which is also at risk as they travel a lot for their shows both locally and abroad,” Chimbodza said.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
NBSZ public affairs manager Esther Massundah said this year they will be engaging more artistes from different genres as well as organisations as they intensify their blood donation campaigns across the country’s provinces.
“Musicians are among the people who command respect in society, so partnering with them is an extension of our strategic network plan which we believe will make our cause to raise awareness on the need to donate blood a major success as they inspire both young and mature people in the society,” Massundah said.
“Although we are already working with thousands of youths in schools, encouraging them to embrace the spirit to give blood, our thrust is to penetrate into the adult donor base, having historically relied on youths for our blood donations.”
Massundah said adults consume around 80% of the blood available as compared to youths, a situation which made it necessary for her organisation to reach out to the adult folk.
“We have a number of campaigns lined up in which we are aiming to reach out to people and one of these is through entertainment hence our partnership with Chipaz and the musicians,” she said. “We are now approaching the Easter Holidays and we encourage people to support us by donating blood at our different branches.”
She said as part of their campaign, on April 1, they will be hosting a golf tournament where they are targeting to raise some funds to buy a generator for their Harare branch for the safe keeping of the blood at required conditions in case of power shortages.
