Mosquito repellent soap has been developed by African researchers to fight malaria.
It is an invention that could change the daily life of thousands of Africans. A soap to fight malaria has just been developed by a start-up in Burkina Faso. At the initiative of a young African engineer, the Faso Soap team, awarded by the University of Berkeley in 2013, developed an effective repellent soap six hours after its use.
Its objective: to fight malaria in Africa. This potentially fatal disease is transmitted to humans through mosquito bites. In 2015, 88% of malaria cases and 90% of deaths worldwide due to the disease occurred in the sub-Saharan region. The stake is therefore substantial.
In a press release, the start-up is appealing for donations to deepen its research and prepare for the production of its soap.
A child dies every two minutes
Malaria is a plague, especially among children. 90% of malaria victims are under five years old. The fight against the disease remains a challenge, the poorest populations very rarely have access to mosquito repellent, which is too expensive. This soap, made from lemon grass, essential oils (shea, marigold) is known for its anti-mosquito properties. As the team of researchers indicates, the idea is to “propose a new method prevention against malaria, integrated into the daily lives of populations ”.
Save 100,000 people
The start-up has set itself a goal: to save 100,000 people from malaria by the end of 2018. It remains to raise the necessary funds to market their product. For this, a campaign of crowdfunding has been launched. “With the sums collected (…) we will be able to carry out research on soap prototypes” already designed by the team, explains Gérard Niyondiko, founder of the start-up.
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