KUN0058 4 GEN 0159 KUWAIT /KUNA-BNR7 HLT-KUWAIT-BLOOD-JARALLAH Central Blood Bank source of pride for Kuwait -- Al-Jarallah By Nadia Dashti (with photos) KUWAIT, Dec 27 (KUNA) -- Health minister Dr. Mohammad Al-Jarallah on Monday said the Central Blood Bank (CBB) is "a source of pride for Kuwait" due to its international reputation and important achievements among the world blood banks. Al-Jarallah told KUNA after visiting the CBB the bank has obtained recognition certificates form famous world blood bank institutions. Al-Jarallah praised the efforts exerted by the Health Ministry Assistant Undersecretary for Blood Transfusion Services Affairs Dr. Abdul-Aziz Al-Bashir and all of the CBB employees. Meanwhile, Al-Bashir said the CBB aims to offer blood for the patients who need it, adding that it managed the self-sufficiency of blood bags since 1969. He noted the number of blood bags in 2003 reached 57.455, while the donors reached 52.667. (end) na.na.rs KUNA 271636 Dec 04NNNN