Key messages

• Safe blood saves lives. A single donation can help save up to three lives.
   
• Every blood donation is a gift of hope. It can mean the difference between life and death for patients in need of transfusions.
   
• Blood donation is a collective effort and a powerful act of solidarity. By coming together as a community of donors, we ensure a steady and safe blood supply for all who need it.
   
• Anyone, anywhere, who needs a transfusion should have timely access to safe blood. Yet in many cases, particularly in emergencies or where donation systems are still developing, the demand often outpaces the supply.
   
• Everyone who can donate blood should consider making regular voluntary, unpaid donations, so that all countries have adequate and reliable blood supplies.
   
• Access to safe blood and blood product is essential for universal health coverage and a key component of effective health systems.
   
• Governments and partners must invest in strong national blood programs to ensure universal access to safe blood transfusions.
   
• Thank you to all blood donors for your invaluable contributions in bringing hope and saving lives.

Key messages also align with the year-long World Health Day campaign: healthy beginnings, hopeful futures, focused on maternal and newborn health. "Give blood, give hope. Support maternal and child health for healthy beginnings, hopeful futures!"

• 14 million women hemorrhage during childbirth every year. Timely access to safe blood transfusion is crucial for appropriate response and saving lives.
   
• Severe bleeding during and after childbirth is a top cause of maternal death, particularly in developing countries.
   
• Millions of babies and young children are also at risk: severe anemia, often resulting from malnutrition and malaria, claim many young lives.
   
• Timely access to safe blood transfusions can prevent maternal and child deaths.
   
• A blood donation can save a mother. A baby. A future.