Upgrade 126 Nanofilter Kiosks into Centers

This quarter we did a powerful dissemination event at The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology in Arusha, Tanzania on 28th April 2019. Among other things we demonstrated the IMPACT made by the Nanofilter innovation:

Nanofilter has created job opportunity to 90 ladies at age 18 - 30 who work at the water stations as Operators. All these ladies were not employed before, as says ................(name reserved): "I had no job; no hope! Thanks to Nanofilter for employing me as an Operator". Through the employment at water stations, these ladies are now able to support their families, send their children to school, and act as financial pillars for their families - for those who are married their husbands are so proud of them. The job that Nanofilter provides is decent, respectable, dignified and fulfilling; the ladies are always dressed in uniform and are clean all the time. Some of the stations give the ladies salary that is four times the amount that they could receive if they work in similar jobs like selling at the shops or working as house girls. The job at Nanofilter give the ladies great respect in the community because they act as "health educators" and "life savers". Each water station provides clean and safe water to about 100 people daily.

 The Breakthrough

Nanofilter^TM innovation has achieved commendable results in various aspects and the sustainability is guaranteed. Here is the summary of impact:

• 10 different awards, include WHO Health Prize
• 250,000 beneficiaries (people who have been reached with clean and safe water)
• 90 Nanofilter^TM water stations (points where people can buy clean and safe water at affordable price)
• 517 Households with Nanofilter^TM (each household has about 6 beneficiaries)
• 73 Institutions with Nanofilter^TM including schools in rural Tanzania have already installed Nanofilter system (some institutions like schools have up to 450 people)
• 90 Employment to young ladies (age 18 - 30) - they work as Operators
• 15 Employment to Nanofilter^TM staff - mostly University Graduates
• 130 other self-employed people / local entrepreneurs, welders, guards, etc.
• Publicity for the product and its sponsors: Online views by 2 million people
• Beyond Tanzania: 10 Nanofilter^TM water stations in Kenya - through Savemod Earth Link company as Franchise
• More than 2.3 million plastic bottles NOT used due to refill business model
• Assured financial sustainability

 As Nanofilter^TM innovation has achieved commendable results in Tanzania the team is now ready to take the product to other countries. At present (April 2019) there are requests from 12 different African countries and 7 other countries around the world.

 These are examples of how pressing the needs are for expanding Nanofilter product:

"Hi, I'm .................(name reserved) we live in San Luis Potosi, I found your page and I am interested, I want to know more about your filter, since I want to market it to people with low resources and in communities where water has great contaminants and bacteria that affect health of people, especially of low-income communities. I do not have great resources I will start little to fill all of Mexico, with its filter, I need to know how much it costs and if it is accountable to all people, but that despite being economical, it is efficient and useful to all."

 "SALES AGENT IN KENYA / OTHER PARTS OF AFRICA: Dear Sir, I hope this mail finds you well. May I once again request you kindly to consider me for the above subject when you will be venturing in this business both here and other parts of Africa. I will be very glad if you may consider me in this project, let me promise to be punctual and responsible if you may consider my request.

Yours faithfully, .........................(name reserved)."

HARD WORK PAYS!

This is a suitable title for our report this quarter as we celebrate the hard-earned award to our Director, Dr. Askwar Hilonga, who has just received an award by Johnson & Johnson Company, U.S.A. It is called Champions of Science Africa Storytelling Challenge. The award included $5,000 and a 5 days trip to Washington DC, U.S to receive the award and attend the American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS) meeting.

This is one of the links to the announcement of Hilonga's award:

https://www.jnj.com/africa-storytelling-challenge/meet-askwar-hilonga

We are sure that this will inspire many young in African and around the world who are coming from challenging economic background: YOUR PAST DOES NOT DETERMINE YOUR FUTURE!

OTHER SUCCESS STORIES OF THE NANOFILTER PROJECT IN THIS QUARTER (By Feb 2019)

1. 3 Weeks stay for Mr. Hubert Hein, the Laboratory expert – a volunteer from Germany via Senior Expert Service (SES)
2. 72 Nanofilter water stations are built by Feb 2019
3. Nanofilter Kiosks beneficiaries: 46,872 (32,688 men/ 14,184 women); Other beneficiaries are through direct sale of filters to 70 institutions (estimates 7,000 people) and 500 households (2,500 people)
4. Through the Nanofilter Kiosks the project has created employment for 75 people, mainly young ladies (age 18-30) and 130 other self-employed people / local entrepreneurs, welders, guards, etc.

Links:

• Hilonga won the Champions of Science Award by Johnson & Johnson