Amidst the ongoing efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, C&D Pink Mango, a local textile industry, has donated different medical supplies to the government of Rwanda. The support includes 6,000 rapid test kits which Denis Ndemezo, the company’s Deputy Managing Director says were very impactful to contain the virus in China. China was the first country that was ravaged by the virus, at the beginning of the year. “These kits helped China contain the virus because they take a very short time to return the results; it only takes five minutes or less, he said in an interview with The New Times. The support also comprises 10,000 masks dedicated to health professionals who might contract the virus in different ways of providing care to patients. According to him, the population’s health comes first for the textile firm. “Our main concern is not just about business and profit-making, we employ more than 1,000 Rwandans whose health has to be maintained through good working conditions. Therefore, it is in our interest to participate in the government’s plan to mitigate the pandemic, Ndemezo added. He told the media that 5,000 test kits are already in the country, adding that the remaining 1,000 are also on the way. C&D Pink Mango is a textile industry located in Kigali Special Economic Zone. Its major products are exported and it is owned by a Chinese national Gordon Gu and his Rwandan partner Maryse Mbonyumutwa. Dr Sabin Nsanzimana, the Director-General of Rwanda Biomedical Centre hailed the donation and confirmed the utility of those kits accordingly. “The RDTS were validated for use in patients with advanced infections and follow up after antibodies are informed. Therefore, we confirm their useful utility”, he said. Rwanda has so far registered 89 confirmed cases of people infected with COVID-19, a pandemic that has reached 180 countries across the globe. Globally, over a million people have been diagnosed with the virus, while the current death toll stands at 59,000.
