A Kenyan has been honoured by Natwest Bank in the United Kingdom after coming up with an invention that is set to disrupt the country's high-brow fashion industry.
The innovator, identified as Shannyce Wambui, through her company, Easy Hang, created a revolutionary hanger made entirely out of biodegradable material and can also be folded.
The bank honoured her effort in cleaning up the continent by producing green products through a scheme aimed at comparing the challenges experienced by female and male innovators when starting a business.
Through a note posted on the bank's website, Wambui explained that she came up with the idea after working in the fashion industry for years and poor hanger designs made it difficult for her to deliver effectively.
"Hangers are highly functional objects that each one of us relies on and uses daily, however, they usually go unnoticed and that is why they have remained relatively unchanged for the past 100 years despite many design flaws.
"The hangers are made of eco-friendly materials such as wood, which not only make them sustainable but also durable, resulting in a reduced need to replace them, equating in less waste," she stated.
"The foldable arms also mean that during transportation, the hangers will be stored with the arms folded down, therefore fitting more products in one package to create an overall reduced surface area resulting in a significant reduction of carbon footprint and excess packaging," Wambui continued.
So impressive was her idea that by Friday, December 20, 2019, she had raised Ksh 800,660 (£6,020) in 49 days from 78 supporters.
"The extra funds will go towards tooling and the full-scale manufacturing of Easy Hang hangers, which will enable us to be ready for market sooner than planned," she explained.
Wambui's innovation is in line with Kenya's dream of achieving clean energy. In 2017, the country banned the use of plastic carrier bags through a directive by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Despite the order, Kenya still grapples with plastic pollution especially supermarket wrappers and plastic bottles.
The country imports a total of 600,000 tonnes of plastic products every year but only recycles 43,000 tonnes.
