This archive report was first published on 28 April 2020.
Senegal has taken the lead in the global quest to develop a rapid Covid-19 testing kit, with a device that can produce results in under 10 minutes and costs just $1 (Sh109).
According to Dr Amadou Sall, one of the brains behind the innovation, the plan is to make the test available to the entire African continent. “There is no need for a highly-equipped lab. It is a simple test that can be done anywhere. The idea is to produce 2 to 4 million kits, not just for us but for African countries,” Dr Sall said.
Mass manufacture of the testing kits is set to start immediately in the United Kingdom and Senegal once it meets regulation standards. The innovation is a result of Senegal's experience in dealing with Ebola and Aids, which has shown that technological know-how is not limited to the West.
Senegal has also embarked on 3D printing of ventilators that cost about $60 (Sh6000) compared to imported ones costing $16,000 (Sh1.6 million). The country's low health expenditure has not hindered its efforts in fighting the virus, with 283 recovered cases, the highest in Africa.
Senegal's innovations are not an isolated case, as the Kenya Medical Research Institute has also started manufacturing Covid-19 testing kits that will give results in 15 minutes. The Food and Drug Administration (USA) has also approved the first home Covid-19 testing kits, with 63 other types of tests aimed at increasing and diversifying diagnostic and serologic testing.
