Meet Dr. Brian-Gabriel, A medical doctor by training, and an entrepreneur. He is the founder of Paperware Limited, a company that manufactures disposable paper cups, and paper food packaging. This is his #COVIDPositiveStory.
When the first cases of #COVID19 came to light in Nigeria, the cost of hand sanitizers doubled almost five times. People who were poor could not afford it and with access to pipe-borne water being almost non-existent in Nigeria, I knew there was something I needed to do. The first thing was for me to manufacture and donate hand sanitizers to local hospitals in Nigeria. I was inspired by the knowledge that the best healthcare systems in the world were overwhelmed by the COVID19 pandemic and the knowledge that our own healthcare system is very poorly funded.
You can read our first #COVIDPositiveStory here.
I targeted hospitals because our hospital workers are more vulnerable given that COVID-19 victims would be brought to these hospitals for treatment, leaving our health workers at risk. Secondly, asides the health workers, other patients admitted in hospitals would be immunocompromised and very highly at risk of severe outcomes if they get infected. Furthermore, we need to protect our health workers at all costs, the fact being that they are our first line of defence against the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak.
So far, We have managed to raise money via crowdfunding on social media and we have made 400L of hand sanitizers, and in partnership with the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Lagos Chapter, distributed them to hospitals in Lagos who are most financially challenged to procure these consumables.
We have grown in baby steps. Our first target was 100L, then we targeted 300L so that I and my team would learn and apply our experience before expanding. Our next target is 1000L. Doctors working in hospitals all over Nigeria have shown interest in getting these Hand sanitizers to hospitals where they work, citing its unavailability. So we intend to continue expanding our capacity to meet as much of their Hand Sanitizer needs as possible, working with their local Nigeria Medical Association Chapters.
Currently, the primary challenge is access to 95 – 97% alcohol, And other inputs, because the prices keep going up, and some companies have reduced their supply of them. The secondary challenge would be access to a bigger facility, which would help us expand our capacity. Today I am planning to reach out to local distilleries and beverage companies to donate what Alcohol they can to our project, but I am hopeful that more support will come in as we keep making an impact.
The very first personal lesson I have learnt from this project is that Nigerians will support you if you are transparent in your dealings. I have also learnt a lot of lessons in economics and how the market works in a time of crisis. Of course, primarily, I have learnt how to make hand sanitizers.
