The number of malaria-related deaths has fallen by 25% since 2000. Yet it remains the deadliest infectious disease. To reduce the number of fatal cases, insecticide-treated mosquito nets are regularly distributed by the WHO and the Global Fund to Fight the Disease. But to remain effective, these mosquito nets must be impregnated with insecticide product at least once a year, which is not always easy to achieve.
Also, two African students thought about a simpler method to make a barrier to mosquitoes which transmit malaria and have just invented an “insecticidal soap”. This revolutionary soap should be marketed at a price of 300 CFA francs, or 0.46 euro cents, according to the Youphil site.
By washing with this soap made from shea, lemongrass and repellent herbs (only products found in Burkina Faso), the African population will be able to protect themselves against parasites that have become resistant to several anti-malarial drugs. This soap was tested, while it was only at the project stage, on a sample of the population in Ougadougou and the feedback is positive. A second more in-depth study, carried out in collaboration with the National Center for the Fight against Malaria in Burkina Faso, will make it possible to analyze the possible side effects of the product before it is marketed. The two students plan to make contact with NGOs fighting malaria at this time.
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The two creators of this soap are students of the International Institute of Water and Environmental Engineering in Ouagadougou. They won, thanks to this project, a competition with $ 25,000 for the first prize and $ 1,500 for the public’s prize. Victory in this competition, which rewards innovative and social business projects from leading schools around the world, should enable them to launch their company, Faso Soap, and to market their anti-malaria soap.
