HAYWARD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mawi DNA Technologies (Mawi), a medical device company focusing on the development of innovative technologies for biological sample collection, announced today that it has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) agreements with the Moroccan Ministry of Investment, Convergence and Evaluation of Public Policies (MICEPP) as well as with the Moroccan Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MIC) to explore a joint venture with Mawi’s local partner BIOTESSIA to establish a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Morocco to serve the African market. The new facility would help fulfill Africa’s need for health sovereignty and accessibility, and Morocco was chosen as the site because it can also function as a launchpad to serve European markets.
"We are excited for the opportunity to expand into Africa through this joint venture with BIOTESSIA as we feel our technology offers unique solutions that directly address the challenges of collecting viable biological samples throughout the African continent,” said Dr. Bassam El Fahmawi, Ph.D., CEO at Mawi DNA Technologies. “Mawi’s core technology enables universal collection among family members and long-term stability of collected samples at a wide range of temperatures, increasing access to essentially any population segment regardless of geography or location. This in turn improves potential health outcomes due to increased diversity in sample availability."
Mawi has developed iSWAB-Microbiome-EL, a product that is being extensively deployed worldwide for population-scale surveillance testing for infectious diseases, notably Covid-19 and its variants, due to its unique properties of viral inactivation, non-toxic formation, and enabling labs to skip the RNA extraction step, reducing costs and increasing testing throughput. Mawi also has a broad portfolio of iSWAB sample collection technologies for mammalian DNA, RNA, intact cells, and microbiome (fecal, soil, surface, and skin), in addition to the HemaSure-OMICS whole blood collection technology allowing RNA, CTC, cfDNA, and genomic DNA to be isolated from a single sample. Mawi’s HemaSure blood collection technology is already being deployed in Kenya for HIV monitoring through a USAID funded program.
"The exchange with BIOTESSIA and Mawi DNA was very promising and conducive to accelerate the project of building a manufacturing unit in Morocco," said His Excellency Mr. Mohcine Jazouli, Minister of Investment, Convergence and Evaluation of Public Policies.
"This project is aligned with the Kingdom of Morocco’s vision to attract foreign investments and fully engage the Moroccan diaspora in multisectoral domains, such as strengthening the health of Africa. This will be accomplished via the unique and innovative biosampling technology set forth by Mawi DNA. BIOTESSIA's strategy and vision are centered around ensuring health needs for every citizen through early detection of diseases. This venture is in accordance with the sanitary reform headed by His Majesty’s guidance and leadership." added Dr. Hanane Chaibainou, DNP, CEO of BIOTESSIA.
About Mawi DNA Technologies
Mawi DNA Technologies, founded in 2013, has developed and commercialized the iSWAB technology, an innovative system for collection of biosamples. Mawi’s mission is to uphold sample integrity from anywhere in the world at room temperature, enabling true sample diversity across any geography or population segment. At Mawi, The Future of Biosampling is Here™. For more information, visit www.mawidna.com and follow the company on LinkedIn and Twitter.
