Nigerians young innovators have received N7.29 million for their inventions of solutions that could reduce the spread of coronavirus.
The beneficiaries, namely Aisha Raheem, of Farmz2U; Victor Boyle Komolafe, of GIVO – garbage In, Value Out; and Chinenye Justin Nwaogwugwu of Macjames Global Resources Limited were given £5000 each for emerging champions in the 2020 Royal Academy of Engineering Project CARE (COVID Africa Rapid Entrepreneur) initiative in response to COVID 19.
Nwaogwugwu of Macjames Global Resources Limited manufactures MACJAMES ® HandSafe instant hand sanitizer with moisturiser that meets World Health Organisation standards.
Boyle-Komolafe of GIVO (Garbage In, Value Out) produces affordable World Health Organisation standard face shields from recycled bottles while Aisha Raheem’s Farmz2U supports farmers with data-driven insights to increase production and online distribution channels to increase their sales.
A statement from the British Deputy High Commission issued on Thursday indicated that the three were awarded £5000 each by Project CARE in May this year through an initiative of the Royal Academy of Engineering, which is supported by the UK Government funding provided through the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
The UK’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, commended the Nigerian beneficiaries for their innovation and resourcefulness as entrepreneurs and urged them to come up with more inventions.
The awardees spoke about their background and how they started working on the innovations that won the awards, highlighting what they hoped to do with their innovations in the future and how to utilise the £5000 award to expand their initiatives.
Commenting on her digital solution feat, Aisha Raheem said: “The COVID19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of digital solutions in connecting farmers to the market. With the disruption of traditional distribution channels like Mile 12, Nigeria’s largest open market, online distribution channels have sustained market activities. Farmz2U, as a digital solution is helping farmers farm better with data and market access.”
In his post-award remarks, Victor Boyle Komolafe said: “At GIVO, we have created WHO standard face shields, from recycled plastic bottle caps and other locally available material to ensure the local supply of these PPE for essential workers and the general public. We currently produce 4,000 units a month, with plans to multiply capacity up to 10x by Q4 2020”, he added.
Also, Chinenye Justin Nwaogwugwu enthused: “At this unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic period, we have reached over 20,000 vulnerable persons with hand sanitizers already, through 10 partners and distributors. With the grant, we are targeting 50,000 to 100,000 persons in the next 1 – 3 months.”
