But it has taken six painstaking years to achieve this milestone with 10 syringe factories licensed in between. Health experts estimate that more than half of the 16 billion annual injections in poorer countries are done with non sterile syringes or needles, many of which are often just rinsed in tepid water between injections.

“There have been too many set backs to remember now, but also a steady recognition, acceptance and ground swell of demand for Auto-Disable syringes especially in developing world countries. At times we have all felt that we were going backwards faster than forwards”, he says.

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