Groundbreaking Egyptian App Seeks to Break Guinness World Record for the Largest Blood Donation

According to the National Blood Transfusion Centre, only one per cent of the population in Egypt donates blood, only 35 per cent of which are voluntary, non-remunerated donors - the rest are family replacement and obligated donors. The latter category carries a higher risk of diseases, such as Hepatitis B and C. Voluntary, non-remunerated blood donations can save lives and are safer as they “reduce the risk of transmittable diseases through blood transfusions,” as per the World Health Organisation.

GiveMeHope is a mobile app by the Hope foundation designed specifically to make the task of donating blood easier and more manageable as it aggregates all calls for blood donations from Twitter through to your phone, where you can either respond or share the post on any social media platform. You can also place your blood donation requests on the app, which automatically posts them on GiveMeHope’s Twitter page. Another feature is online matching, which allows you to contact donors matching the required blood type within 20 km from your location, all while maintaining anonymity and privacy. So far the app has over 9,000 users, around 6,000 of which are Egyptian, and this number is continuing to grow. 

The Hope foundation’s efforts to raise awareness about the importance of donating blood do not stop there; on February 23^rd, GiveMeHope will be trying to break the Guinness World Record for the largest blood donation, with over 110,000 donors across all of Egypt expected to participate. The campaign kicks off on Tuesday January 19^th at the National Blood Transfusion Centre at 1 PM. You can find out more via the hashtag #هتبرع_بـدمي.

In 2013, Hope was selected among the 50 most socially influential organisations by Synergos' Pioneers of Egypt programme, and was nominated for the Innovation Tournament 2021 Award.

Follow Hope on Facebook and Twitter to find out how you can help.