A UK-based engineering academy has funded three Kenyan entrepreneurs to a tune of Ksh1.95 million to further their innovative ideas to fight COVID-19.
The Royal Engineering Academy under its Project CARE (COVID Africa Rapid Entrepreneurs) initiative awarded the three Kenyans – Catherine Wanjoya, Collince Oluoch and Fridah Njogu – to scale up their business model.
Each of them got Ksh665,000 which will help in scaling up their innovation with the intent to tackle coronavirus pandemic in the country.
British High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Mariott on Tuesday lauded the three Kenyans.
The three Kenyans were among 53 applicants who won the price together with five others from Nigeria, South Africa and Ghana.
Wanjoya, one of the five female African engineering entrepreneurs has designed an incinerator to safely dispose used protective equipment (PPE) on-site.
Oluoch’s innovation in the mobile world where he has developed a platform which offers real-time contact tracing with complete health information about a particular patient.
Njogu, on the other hand, is providing data-driven insights on hospital and health facilities readiness to provide critical services during the pandemic.
Project CARE was started in April with the view of funding engineering entities and UK and Africa. It is an international conglomerate made up of health, academic and other funding bodies which fund engineering innovations.
The initiative has so far helped a couple of African countries such as Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana and Kenyan to develop engineering techniques geared towards fighting the spread of coronavirus.
It has worked with a host of engineers from Sub-Saharan African in devising ways through which coronavirus can be fought in areas where the population is dense and lacks the proper health capacity to handle the virus.
![Waihiga Mwaura. [Photo: Courtesy]](https://i0.wp.com/www.jamhuri-news.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Wiahiga.jpg?resize=326%2C245&ssl=1)