BIUST doles anti-coronavirus products out
Koketso Kgoboge | Monday May 4, 2020 16:02
The delivery made to the village leadership recently was the university satisfying its pledge of providing the products that had the Botswana Bureau of Standards (BOBS) approval pending.
BOBS has finally given the green light to the BIUST manufactured products that include bathing and liquid soaps, sanitisers, and disinfectants.
Over and above the products, the university has also produced dispensers for sanitisers that would also be supplied to the community.
The university has further developed a dashboard for visualisation of COVID-19 cases. The dashboard has since been adopted by the Covid-19 taskforce and is in use.
The deputy district commissioner for Palapye, Odiseng Moruti received the products from the university vice-chancellor Professor Otlogetswe Totolo on behalf of the community.
The products were manufactured in partnership with Morupule Coal Mine (MCM) and Local Enterprise Agency (LEA). MCM has contributed P100,000 towards the production of sanitisers, LEA is facilitating placement of the products in the market.
The university and its partners donated 2,000 units of packaged liquid soap, 1,000 units of bar soaps and sanitisers to the Palapye Administration Authority.
“All these inventions and products are going to have a huge impact in Palapye, but BUIST is a national university and I want these products to reach other areas in all corners of the country,” the vice-chancellor said.
“These products couldn’t have come at a better time. We are in a war situation, and this is the time when the nation needs us to come to the rescue and ensure our people are safe. This is corporate social responsibility in action,” Totolo said.
He added: “Our young people have been very busy working day and night with their professors to come up with these wonderful inventions and these are our soldiers.”
Totolo said the products would live beyond the coronavirus period. He said the products had been around for sometime but produced on a small scale.
“We have partnered with LEA and now we are ramping up production to help Batswana now and in the future. We are also looking at accessing larger markets for these products locally and abroad,” he said.
LEA chief executive officer Dr. Racious Moatshe encouraged community leaders to favour the local products and empower Batswana.
“The time has come as a nation and people with the responsibility to make bold decisions to protect our products against those we import,” he said.
Chairperson of the Palapye sub-council Khumoyame Lekoko appreciated the collaboration of BIUST, MCM, and LEA for the coronavirus fighting products. She further encouraged the tripartite partnership to continue innovating products that would aid the community in various facets.