Africa’s leading genomics company, 54Gene in conjunction with FCMB Bank and the Ogun State Government, has launched Nigeria’s first COVID-19 Mobile Testing Laboratory.
Recall that 54Gene recently launched a COVID-19 Testing Support Fund that will help increase COVID-19 testing capacity in the country by up to 1,000 additional tests a day. The fund also covers buying testing instruments and the required biosafety materials such as biosafety cabinets and personal protective equipment needed to keep frontline healthcare workers safe.
In a LinkedIn Post, the Co-Founder/Vice President of the Genomics start-up shared the cheery news of the Mobile Laboratory;
“We have just launched our first COVID-19 mobile laboratory in continuation of our efforts to help expand capacity for COVID-19 testing across the country. Our mobile lab is fully equipped with vital instruments required for COVID-19 testing and allows us to quickly offer our services to multiple states due to the ease of transport. Its unique plug and play feature eliminates the logistics of shipping samples to another location for the processing which reduces turnaround times for test results and allows clinicians to manage and treat patients accurately, sooner rather than later.
The first round of testing utilizing our mobile laboratory will be carried out in Ogun state, in the coming weeks beginning today across all local government areas in the state, over the next month.”
The new solar-paneled COVID-19 Mobile Laboratory, currently domiciled in Abeokuta, Ogun State serves as a significant boost to Nigeria’s Healthcare infrastructure as the country continues the battle against the pandemic.
The Laboratory has a daily testing capacity of one hundred and fifty samples.
The 40ft structure built with container technology provides a unique plug and play feature that eliminates the logistics of shipping samples to another location for processing. This reduces turnaround times for test results and allows clinicians to manage and treat patients accurately, sooner rather than later.
Key partners involved in the realization of the COVID-19 Mobile Laboratory include Argentil Group, Arnergy Solar, Tempohousing Nigeria Limited, and Wild Fusion Limited.
The reality is this new COVID-19 Mobile Testing Laboratory should be replicated across Nigeria’s rural areas if the government intends to ramp up testing capacities.
