Anti-Malaria Soap Invented

Moctar Dembele and Gerard Niyondiko, both from Africa, won the Global  Social Venture Competition (GSVC) this year. The competition is  participated globally by vying entrepreneurs who have ideas that can  impact the world through their proposed products, roviding aspiring  entrepreneurs with mentoring, and exposure.

Dembele and Niyondoko thought of creating an anti-malaria soap because  most of the malaria cases happen in Africa, a predicament brought by  the continent’s poor sanitation.

About half of the world’s population is at risk of malaria, according  to the World Health Organization (WHO). The disease’s impact is mostly  felt in the world’s poorest countries; in 2010, there were an  estimated 660,000 malaria deaths, 90% of which occurred in sub-Saharan  Africa, mostly among children under five years old.

Thus, the soap was invented by the students who both study at the  International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering in  Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, Africa.

Called “Fasoap”, this anti-malaria soap is made from shea butter,  essential lemongrass oil and other ingredients that are still secret.  Shea butter is a fat extract from the African Shea tree nut  (Vitellaria paradoxa) which has healing qualities due to the presence  of several fatty acids and plant sterols, namely oleic, stearic,  palmitic and linolenic acids in it while essential lemongrass oil is  from lemongrass or scientifically called Cymbopogon citratus, which  has been used for centuries as insect repellent, pesticide, as well as  antiseptics.

Niyodiko said that after using the soap, it leaves on the skin a scent  that repels mosquitoes. Its waste waste contain substances that  prevent the development of mosquito larvae.

In many of the African countries, malaria also exacts a heavy burden  on their economies aside from the high rate of deaths. Household  budgets are being pressed by high fees for drugs and treatments,  doctors’ fees and transportation to clinics. Due to this, marginalized  communities are trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty because they  have lost productivity or income while state funds as well are being  drained to pay for the maintenance of health facilities and research  programs.

Dembele and Niyondiko bagged the GSVC grand prize of $25,000

Niyondiko says that their anti-malaria soap company, will help address  all these issues. He said that in their country, the majority of the  population lives below the poverty line, adding that most people can’t  afford to regularly buy medicines and products such as anti-mosquito  creams, sprays or protective nets.

“So we thought of a repellent and larvicidal mosquito soap which will  be accessible and affordable to the majority of the population, seeing  that soap is a commodity product and especially not going to add other  additional costs to the population,” he added.

People suffering from malaria have these symptoms: severe headache,  extremely high fever, aching bones, profuse sweating, your exhausted  body shivers with teeth-chattering chills.

The soap innovation was awarded the $25,000 grand prize.

The team is now working on the optimization of the soap through  clinical trials, with the aim of entering the market by 2015, starting  from Burkina Faso.

“Our goal is that our soap is widely distributed to reach the largest  possible number in sub-Saharan Africa and other parts of the world  affected by malaria,” says Niyondiko. “This is to say that NGOs,  companies will be our potential customers for the distribution of our  products. After the victory obtained at Berkeley there are so many  NGOs, companies who spoke to a partnership with us in order to  distribute our soap in different parts, even outside Africa.”

To win the GSVC grand prize, Niyondiko, 35, and Dembele, 22, beat 650  competitors from nearly 40 countries. Their victory marks the first  time an entry from Africa has won the competition.

“It is a feeling of joy and pride for us and for Africa in general,”  says Niyondiko of their win. “It also shows that in Africa we are not  back(ward) and that Africa’s problems can be solved by Africans  themselves.”

GSVC was founded by MBA students at UC Berkeley?s Haas School of  Business, culminating each year with the Global Finals and Conference  at Berkeley in April, with teams from around the world and Bay Area  professionals for a day of learning and networking. GSVC has evolved  into a global network supported by an international community of  volunteer judges, mentors and student organizers and a partnership of  premier business schools in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa.

Source:  www.cnn.com