Sunday June 15, 2025
Aydarus Mustafa Arab (left) and Abdillahi Abdi Muse (right) have built a grassroots blood donor network in Hargeisa, Somaliland, helping hundreds of patients, especially those with rare blood types, access lifesaving transfusions through social media and community outreach.
Hargeisa (HOL) —Two young men in Hargeisa have become a lifeline for patients in urgent need of blood, operating a grassroots network that has helped hundreds across the self-declared Republic of Somaliland.
Abdillahi Abdi Muse and Aydarus Mustafa Arab have volunteered for years to connect blood donors with patients suffering from medical emergencies, particularly those with rare blood types. Working without institutional support, they rely on social media to mobilize donors, often within hours.
“In 2024 alone, I helped coordinate donations for more than 400 patients,” said Abdillahi, who has worked in this space for 11 years. “I get messages from families asking for specific blood types, and I post on Facebook. People respond, and I link them directly.”
Aydarus began volunteering after a personal experience as a universal donor. “I have O-negative blood, which is rare and in high demand,” he said. “One night, I donated to a girl who needed eight bags. Then another patient came in. That’s when I realized how urgent the need is.”
To streamline their efforts, Aydarus created a donor database of over 1,500 volunteers sorted by blood type. Still, some types remain hard to find. “Only 17 of them have AB-negative blood,” he said.
Patients often come from outside Hargeisa and lack relatives to advocate for them, the volunteers said. “Most people I help don’t have family here. They’ve come from other regions,” said Abdillahi.
Their work has become vital in Somaliland, where health infrastructure is limited and formal blood banks are understocked. Yet misconceptions persist.
“Some people think we’re being paid or acting as brokers,” Aydarus said. “But this is voluntary. We do it to help.”
Their impact is tangible.
“When I was in critical condition, Abdillahi found a donor in hours,” said Mustafa Mohamed Deeq, a patient who recovered after receiving a transfusion. “Aside from God, he saved my life.”
Ikraan Yasin described a similar experience. “My sister was hemorrhaging and needed blood urgently. Someone gave me Aydarus’s number. Within hours, he had connected us with a donor. He brought us relief when we were overwhelmed.”
The volunteers’ efforts come as the World Health Organization marks World Blood Donor Day on June 14. This year’s theme—“Donate blood, give hope: Together we can save lives”—echoes the work already being done in Somaliland’s capital, where two men have turned a mobile phone and a message board into a quiet revolution.
- With files from the BBC Somali Service