Kilifi residents get free 'tissue face masks' from Turkish entrepreneur

A Turkish entrepreneur in Kilifi county has devised a way to beat the boredom while implementing the ‘Stay at Home’ directive and at the same time help the local community fight the COVID-19.

In a video shared on his social media platforms, Osman Elsek, the CEO of Elsek and Elsek Group of Companies, demonstrates how to make face masks from locally available materials.

Elsek says it only takes a kitchen towel, rubber bands and a stapler to make a face mask that could save a life.

“Necessity is the mother of inventions after all. The idea came to me while I was in my home office and I thought it would be good to implement it and give the masks to the local residents in Kikambala,” said Elsek.

On Thursday, Elsek made 1,000 face masks at home and distributed 500 of them to the poor locals, who can barely afford three meals a day, for free.

“These are my neighbours and they are poor. They cannot afford a facemask that now goes for up to Sh450 a piece,” said Elsek.

To make a face mask, one sheet of kitchen towel is folded into four.

Then a rubber band is placed at each of two sides of the folded sheet, folded and the edges of stapled so as to hold the rubber band.

One roll of kitchen towel can produce about 80 face masks.

“I used only about Sh8,000 to make more than 3,000 pieces of face masks,” said Elsek.

Kikambala Sun ‘n’ Sand village, which has a population of slightly more than 2,500 people will be the beneficiaries.

On Sunday, Kilifi county Health CEC Anisa Omar said it is a noble idea but the improvised face masks have to be made safe.

“He can spray the face masks with surgical spirit to disinfect them and make them safe for use,” said Omar on phone.

She said after spraying the masks with the surgical spirit them must be made to dry before use.

Elsek said the masks are disposable.

“I give at least two face masks per person per day so that when it gets dirty or worn out, it is replaced. You cannot use one face mask for two days,” said Elsek.

He said it is cheap and easy to make the face masks that any person with about Sh2,000 can help make at least 100 face masks and possible save 100 lives.

This is the second project that the investor has done for the Kikambala Sun ‘n’ Sand villages.

Elsek has also drilled boreholes in his 8.5-acre home along the road leading to the Sun ‘n’ Sand Beach Resort, which he then pumps to five water points for the residents to use free of charge.

At each water point, he provides soap for hand-washing.

He pumps about 500,000 litres of water along the 1.7km pipe daily.

“I am concerned about the health and lives of the villagers who have become my great friends. I am determined to ensure this coronavirus does not reach Kikambala,” he said.