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Six years in the past, Rwanda had a blood supply drawback. Greater than 12 million folks reside within the small East African nation, and like these in different nations, generally they get into automotive accidents. New moms hemorrhage. Anemic kids want pressing transfusions. You may’t predict these emergencies. They simply occur. And after they do, the crimson stuff saved in Place A has to seek out its approach to a affected person in Place B—quick.

That’s not an enormous drawback when you reside in a metropolis. In the US and the UK, 80 % of the inhabitants clusters round city hubs with high-traffic hospitals and blood banks. In African nations like Libya, Djibouti, and Gabon, about 80 to 90 % of the populations reside in cities, too. However in Rwanda, that quantity flips: 83 % of Rwandans reside in rural areas. So, historically, when distant hospitals wanted blood, it got here by street.

That’s not ultimate. The nation is mountainous. Roads could be scorching, lengthy, and bumpy. If saved cool, donated blood could be saved for only a month or so, however some elements that hospitals isolate for transfusions—like platelets—will spoil in days. A turbulent drive just isn’t an ideal match for such finicky cargo.