ZIMBABWE is skating on thin ice: its blood bank is sustained largely by schoolchildren.
The irony is stark — about 80% of the blood is used by adults.
It is an uncomfortable truth that should jolt society out of its comfort zone.
How did we reach this stage? Is it because the National Blood Service Zimbabwe (NBSZ) has not done enough to urge citizens to donate blood? Or is it driven by cultural attitudes and misconceptions surrounding blood donation?
Whatever the cause, the result is clear: there is a mismatch between donors and users.
For years, teams from NBSZ visited schools to collect blood. Pupils would assemble and many stepped forward to donate.
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That approach, while commendable, has created a dependable pipeline of donors. However, the same energy has not been consistently extended to communities to explain why blood donation is essential.
The reliance on schools has long been framed as a success story of organised outreach and early civic education. To some extent, that is true. School-based donation programmes created a reliable and structured pipeline that many countries struggle to achieve.
However, this should complement a broader donor base — not replace it.
A health system that relies heavily on minors to sustain the national blood supply while adults — the very group most likely to require transfusion — remain largely absent from the donor pool is not balanced. It is fragile.
Adults dominate the demand side of blood use — surgery, trauma cases, chronic illness treatment and childbirth complications — yet they remain largely missing from the supply side.
The result is a system perpetually chasing shortages it should not be facing.
If adults were to step forward in greater numbers, blood supplies would stabilise and costs could decrease.
The task before NBSZ is clear: it must intensify efforts to drive adult participation in blood donation.
The fact that blood donation is voluntary and non-remunerated should not be used by adults as an excuse to shirk their civic responsibility.
Zimbabwe’s fragile blood donation system needs adult donors.
If schoolchildren were to stop donating blood, the country would face a serious crisis.
Adults must lead by example.
One unit of blood can save up to three lives when separated into components.
That statistic alone should galvanise adults to donate blood.
Zimbabwe does not have a blood donation awareness problem alone — it has a participation problem among adults who benefit the most from the system but contribute the least.
The solution is not to reduce schoolchildren participation, but to dramatically expand adult engagement.
Workplaces, communities, religious institutions and civic organisations must become active donation hubs rather than passive observers of school-led drives. Blood donation must shift from being an occasional campaign to a social norm among adults.
Until adults come to the party, Zimbabwe will continue relying on its young citizens to prop up a system meant to serve everyone.