Detecting Covid-19 in sewage
The Covid-19 pandemic is real and has severely impacted lives and economies of all the countries in the world. The need for actionable data is high, especially in developing countries. Detecting Covid-19 in sewage waste samples is mainstream in many countries in the world, as sewage provides an unbiased basis for decision making. A consortium of Orvion, Upande, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), KIWASCO and NAWASSCO is working on the MoCOMo project (Mobile COVID19 Monitoring in sewage for big cities).
MoCOMo is a UN-Habitat/Aqua4All funded pilot project to demonstrate field based detection of COVID-19 in wastewater using Orvion Udetect® in combination with Upande Udetect software module. Field based data is visualized in an online dashboard with maps, charts and reports. In June – August 2020 Upande tested the technology in Nakuru and Kisumu, Kenya and Orvion analyzed the results obtained. About 11% of the samples had COVID-19 in them. Further field samples are being prepared to test new common variants of the virus including the Omicron variant.
Udetect is a mobile technology that is scalable and can be operated by technical staff of organizations without the need of nearby sophisticated laboratories. The data generated can be available and provided to local institutions and authorities.
