South Africa increases investment in start-ups for medical device development

Cape Town [South Africa], December 24: The South African Brewing Company (SAB) has announced a £30 million investment in LIQID Medical, a medical device company that is pioneering a new class of sight-preserving eye implants.
The foundation is proud to be one of the first in the country to use its endowment capital for investments of this kind: "The aim of this is to use traditional sources of capital to solve major socio-economic problems such as inequality, unemployment and poverty," said Bridget Evans, executive director of the SAB Foundation.
LIQID Medical Technology Centre in Cape Town received R1,3 million as the winner of the foundation's annual Disability Empowerment Award in 2019.
LIQID Medical founder Dr Daemon McClunan explained that the devices were designed to find the most clinically effective and cost-saving solutions for the treatment of glaucoma, the leading cause of blindness.
An investment of R9.5 million from the South African Technology and Innovation Agency and R30 million from the SAB Foundation is for technology development, regulatory accreditation, clinical trials and intellectual property portfolio development over a three-year period.
LIQID Medical has developed three patented implants for the treatment of glaucoma, each designed to fill three clearly defined gaps in the market and will be produced in South Africa. These three devices are OptiShunt, iPortVR and IFlow. McClunan is an eye disease specialist who has been developing these devices since 2015.
"Commercialisation and then market launch are expected three years after receipt of investment. This is due to the company completing further clinical trials and receiving approval from international regulatory authorities within the given timeframe," he said.
Evans said the SAB Foundation's objective is to support social innovators in developing their businesses, which in turn will contribute to the growth of the local economy and job creation.
"Our foundation is very interested in improving the quality of life for people with disabilities and is excited about the opportunities this new technology offers in preventing blindness," Evans concluded, as reported by Pretoria News, a partner of TV BRICS network.
Source: TV Brics