Two students by the names of Moctar Dembele and Gerard Niyondiko are both taking the lead in preventing the spread of the life threatening disease known as Malaria. By using local herbs and natural ingredients found within the two students home countries of Burkina Faso and Burundi, the pair have been able to create a soap which is able to repel misquotes away from an individual’s skin, therefore preventing the spread of Malaria.
This invention is now known as an award winning innovation established by these two young students. The innovation was awarded the grand prize of $25,000 in April by The Global Social Venture Competition, also known as the GSVC. The competition was originally launched by Berkley MBA students to help young entrepreneurs have the opportunity to transform their ideas into a budding business. The one goal of the business is to have a positive social impact on others.
Dembele and Niyondiko’s invention is titled ‘Fasoap’ and is made of shea butter, lemongrass oil, and other ingredients found within their home countries, which have yet to be revealed to the public eye. The two established the idea of inventing a repelling soap within their university in Burkina Faso, which is the International Institute For Water and Environmental Engineering. They stated that they came up with the idea of inventing the repelling soap because “the sanitation problem within Africa is one of the causes of mosquito vectors of Malaria.” Therefore, by establishing a soap, sanitation levels would rise and the spread of Malaria would decline.
The World Health Organization has noted that at least half of the world’s population is or will be subjected to Malaria. Stable countries are able to afford the proper treatment, yet poor nations are subjected to fall victim to this life threatening illness. The main target of Malaria is young children, and the countries most affected by Malaria are the ones located within sub-Saharan Africa.
The World Health Organization explains that within the year of 2010 “there were an estimated 660,000 malaria deaths, 90 percent of which occurred in sub-Saharan Africa, mostly among children under five years old.” These statistics were mind-blowing to the two young students, and it gave them enhanced motivation to find a treatment for this preventable disease.
Seeking treatment is difficult in developing nations because of the high cost of doctor’s visits, vaccinations, and transportation to health clinics. Many are unable to afford this treatment, and therefore, are subjected to an early and painful death. State funds are also being drained due to the upkeep of health facilities and providing the workers with the proper tools, medication, and training.
Malaria is a preventable disease that is draining the economy, which is why these two students stepped up to the plate to establish an affordable treatment to those in poverty stricken nations.
Amazingly, these two students defeated 650 other competitors in this competition. The competitors were from forty different countries around the world, and offered a high level of competition within this contest.
Today, the soap is in production and is being spread throughout poverty stricken nations around the world and is estimated to save at least one million lives within the first year of it being available to the public.
– Grace Beal
Sources: CNN, Medical Daily, Berkeley
Photo: Bonfire Impact