The Bloodless Battle - Against Malaria

With Africa’s malaria burden, technologists are developing new, cost-effective ways to detect the disease – minus the needle.

- Karen Mwendera

A needle, blood and waiting time are the three aspects of a traditional malaria test.

In Kampala, Uganda, 24-year-old Brian Gitta has created a device that eliminates all of the above, in a first for malaria testing.

Matibabu, meaning ‘treatment’ in Swahili, tests malaria without drawing blood and delivers the results instantly.

The device, clipped on to a patient’s finger, beams a red light, and the results are available within a minute on a mobile phone linked to the device.

Growing up, Gitta had a passion for computers and went on to pursue a degree in computer science at the University of Makerere in Kampala.

Little did he know his eagerness and passion for tech would lead him to the medical field.

“I’m not one who grew up saying I wanted to be a doctor or a lawyer. I mean I’m not a doctor but I’m glad I can make a change in the medical realm from there,” Gitta tells FORBES AFRICA.

Gitta, who is often in and out of hospitals, now runs Matibabu, a company that takes its name from the device he created. He runs it with a team of six full-time staff. Although he is the CEO and founder of Matibabu, he prefers to be called a team leader.

It all started four years ago. In his first year at university, Gitta got together with his fellow students to change the way malaria was diagnosed.

The prevalence of malaria continues to be high in Africa, and is one of the top killers.

“I remember the first year when we started it, a lot of people were excited about what we were doing,” Gitta says. Their project got them accolades such as the UN Women’s Empowerment Award in 2013.

“I think what we are doing has a lot of potential and we can definitely do something about this.”