This archive report was first published on 19 June 2020.
On June 18, 2020, the Kenyan Ministry of Health received a significant boost in its fight against COVID-19 with the donation of test kits from Base Titanium.
The test kits, known as Sansure COVID-19 Nucleic Acid Diagnostic Kits, have the capacity to conduct 1,344 COVID-19 tests and will be instrumental in helping the government combat the spread of the virus in the country.
According to Dr. Melba Wasunna, Base Titanium's Manager External Affairs, the donation was made in response to a request from the State Department for Mining Principal Secretary Kaberia, who recognized the need to build testing capacity.
Dr. Wasunna added that the kits are part of Base Titanium's COVID-19 support programmes, which also include installing handwashing stations, providing food packages to vulnerable households, and training additional health workers in Kwale County.
Base Titanium's donation comes at a time when African health authorities are struggling to compete with richer countries for scarce testing material due to increased demand, as reported by The Lancet.
The test kits were received by Health CAS Dr. Rashid Aman at Afya House, who thanked the team and everyone who has helped the Ministry in fighting COVID-19.
Dr. Aman commended the private sector's efforts and encouraged them to continue supporting the government in the fight against the disease, highlighting the need for PPE and medical equipment.
Base Titanium's intervention is part of the company's COVID-19 Strategy, which aims to ease the burden on communities, authorities, and staff in the wake of COVID-19.
So far, the company has invested over KSh 80 million in different programmes, including food donation to over 50,000 households in Kwale County, 100 ventilators to the Ministry of Health, and 15,000 pieces of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to different stakeholders.
