EMERGENCY + MOSQUITO TRAPPING BULB

This device( mosquito trapping + emergency bulbs) is built to alleviate the high rate of malaria cases while producing light for business and educational activities during power outages.

The Mosquito + Emergency Trapping bulb consists of a specialized resistor that attracts and traps mosquitoes. A 9v battery is also introduced to store energy and serve as a backup should there be a power outage. The team opted for a LED Bulb instead of CFLs and Incandescent as a way of ensuring 70% energy efficiency. The bulb with battery can be lighted with moist contact making it able to function without switch. The LED bulb is more durable as compared to the CFLs and incandescent bulbs and can also withstand breakage and damages caused by falls. It is encased in a plastic casing which makes it able to withstand expansion when heated up and contraction when cooled so much more than the CFLs and incandescent bulbs. The LED bulb can be easily repaired when faulty. 

According to the latest world malaria report by the World Health Organization released in November 2018, there were 219 million cases, up from 217 million cases in 2017 worldwide. By the W.H.O, as at 2021, 241 million cases of malaria have been recorded and a total number of 627000 malaria deaths. In our school, Ghana National College, in 2021, 240  students tested positive and were absent from class and this affected their academic work and productivity of the school. The effect of malaria on the individual has great impact on their respective cities, countries and even continents as a whole. The most vulnerable of all are children under the age of 5 years. Malaria has vastly been recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa. Temperature, rainfall and humidity, are all factors which contribute to malaria. Malaria causes jaundice and anemia. In severe cases may cause kidney failure, seizures, mental confusion, coma and even death. Also  unstable power supply and unplanned outages affects night activities such as studying, trading and other business transactions retarding productivity in the community, Ghana National College and the Nation as a whole.

  The high rate of malaria cases ,death and power outages in the community and the College are the problems at hand which the device seeks and aims  to solve.

The innovation seeks to prevent  children, pregnant women, teenagers in the community and also students of Ghana National College  and the entire population of Africa against malaria and unplanned power outage.

The affected people are also part of the present and future working force of the country and hence, need to be protected from this canker (plasmodium parasite that causes malaria). The academic work of students in the community and both Ghana National College would be improved since the LED bulb contains a specialized resistor that attracts and traps mosquitoes and an in-build 9v battery which can be used by students to study at prep for 24 hours whenever there is an unplanned power outages. These will significantly reduce morbidity and mortality rate of malaria battling Africa and the world while boosting productivity at night. 

The LED bulb is an efficiency energy saving bulb and hence would go a long way to reduce the cost of buying electricity for domestic usage especially for the poor and low income earners.

 In the end, the Sustainable Development Goal 3( Good Health and Well-Being) and Sustainable Development Goal 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) will be achieved.

The Energy Efficiency Club of Ghana National College conducted a research among students in the College and the surrounding communities such as Menyamewu, Ekon to ascertain the causes and effects of the active cases of malaria. The teaching and non-teaching staff of the  College were also included in the research. During the research, the causes identified include stagnant water from bathrooms due to choked drains, inability of students to sleep under treated mosquito nets due to the overcrowding and the nature of bed plunks in the dormitories. Also, the inability of students to use mosquito sprays and repellents due to asthmatic and pneumonia patients in the dormitories. 

The team members brainstormed a solution that will address all these problems hence the  team then decided to develop the LED bulbs.

 During the research the team also realized that most of the community members cannot afford to buy mosquito sprays, coils and repellent regularly since they live under $1 per day. So, in an attempt to save them the cost of buying the mosquito sprays, coils and repellent frequently, the LED bulbs were introduced in the communities since it is durable and has a life span of five years.

In the design and development of the solution, the team engaged certain students of the school and even a few teachers who used the product and  gave non-biased recommendations on how it could be improved.

The product is currently being tested in Ghana National College where about 200 students are currently making use of it. The mosquito trapping feature of our bulb has drastically reduced malaria morbidity rate where the school clinic in Ghana National College have recorded 10 malaria cases in a space of three solid months after the school opted to use our LED bulb on a full scale against the previous three months which saw 240 malaria cases recorded. The population of Ghana National College is 3500 currently using the LED bulb.

The College has 100 dormitories for both boys and girls with each dorm having 4 bulbs each which gives a total of 400 bulbs. The classrooms together with the laboratories have 78 rooms with 4 bulbs each making a total of 312 bulbs used. The total

 The Mosquito Trapping + Emergency Bulb saves $300 in annual lost saving as it is 70% energy efficient than CFL and incandescent. If we multiply this by 6million households  our bulb will save $2.2billion.

The team possesses a board of directors made of highly skilled professionals who advice the team on its day-to-day activities. The team has also contested in quite a number of projects where it has emerged victorious. Some of the projects are ; The High School Water Project, The L.P.G project, and so much more.

 For a business to survive, one needs a partner or partners. With this view, the team partnered with Solid Home Appliance for STEM education; we had access to the development of  special skills, tribal knowledge, physical assets and operational scalability that was not possible to the enterprise as it relied on it's native capabilities. Also the team in partnership the Solid Home Appliances have trained 100 students on how to assemble the Mosquito + Emergency Trapping bulb.

The money obtained from this initiative will be used to advance the production of The Emergency+ Energy Trapping Bulb which helps accomplish The Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 7 that places emphasis on Good Health and Well-Being and Clean and Affordable Energy.

The solution will accomplish The Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 7 which talks about Good Health and Well-Being and Clean and Affordable Energy respectively. The prize will hence help boost production of The Mosquito Trapping Bulb for the general public in order to eliminate Malaria.