The Pasteur Institute in Senegal says it is close to producing an affordable, handheld Covid-19 diagnostic test kit that can give results in a matter of minutes.
The Pasteur Institute, a biomedical research center based in Senegal’s capital city of Dakar, says it is close to producing an affordable, handheld Covid-19 diagnostic test kit that can give results in a matter of minutes.
The Covid-19 rapid test kits will first be available on the continent through governments and health organizations like the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Sall said.
Dr. Anderson Latt, an epidemiologist with the World Health Organization, told CNN that one of the challenges of addressing the virus on the continent is a shortage of test kits.
“There is a need for countries to work together in a coordinated manner and ensure that test kits are available,” Latt said.
Sall, who is also the director of the WHO Collaborating Center for Arboviruses and Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers in Senegal, believes the presence of the rapid Covid-19 test kits will help boost the economy.
