WHO · Blood Safety · Global Access · Health Systems

Safe Blood Is More Than Donation

WHO's 2026–2030 action plan shows that reliable access depends on the entire blood system, not only the number of donations.

Archil JaliashviliExternal policy update
Global blood-supply network linking donation, testing, transport, hospitals and patient access
Editorial illustration of the connected blood-supply pathway. It does not depict a specific WHO facility or imply WHO endorsement.

WHO reported that voluntary unpaid donors supplied more than 85% of approximately 120 million blood donations reported for 2023.

That is important progress. But the global total does not tell us whether safe, compatible blood reaches each patient when and where it is needed.

Twenty-four countries reported fewer than five donations per 1,000 people. WHO also identified continuing gaps in financing, regulation, infrastructure, workforce, testing, quality assurance and appropriate clinical use.

Safe blood is not only a donation. It is a chain: donor recruitment, collection, testing, matching, processing, storage, transport, clinical decision-making and timely delivery.

Why it matters

Trauma, postpartum haemorrhage, severe anaemia, surgery and paediatric emergencies can become time-critical before an appropriate unit is ready. Increasing donation remains essential. So do stronger national blood services, sustainable financing, quality systems and last-mile delivery.

This is an external policy signal. The WHO action plan does not evaluate any specific oxygen therapeutic and does not support a claim that donor blood can be replaced.

Primary sources