00:06This 3D printer and the machine producing its filament were both built in Dar es Salaam.
00:15Engineering graduates Florence Sakaya and Joshua Macha started Swahili D-Maker four
00:21years ago with a goal of making 3D printing technology more accessible in Tanzania.
00:28Initially we had a challenge in showing or bringing this new technology that a lot of
00:36people they were not aware of it so it took us to the path that we need to train these
00:42people to know this technology first and then we will build the machine.
00:47But up to now we have impacted more than 9000 learners so we just showed the need and the
00:55demand now is going high.
00:59The company initially imported parts and raw materials including supplies from China.
01:04It is now developing its own production process using discarded plastic bottles to make filament
01:10for the printers.
01:12The next challenge is producing enough of it.
01:15There are some challenges in sorting of these raw materials but also the machinery that we
01:23currently have has a low production capacity I can say so we want to continue partnering up
01:30with investors and mostly environmental focused institutes to see or an organization to see how we can scale up to
01:43continue to make impact in environment.
01:45But also bringing technology in Tanzania.
01:473D manufacturing is growing across Africa's urban tech hubs though it remains a niche industry.
01:55Experts say it allows students and small businesses to quickly prototype and test custom designs before
02:00investing in full scale production.
02:03Dar es Salaam generates roughly 850 tons of plastic waste every single day.
02:08As Tanzania pushes for more local manufacturing companies like Swahili D-Maker are banking on the country's next big innovation
02:16which starts with something most people simply throw away.
02:20The company is also training students to design and build products using 3D printing technology.
02:26This can help reduce the cost of developing and testing engineering projects.
02:33When it comes to projects if it weren't for 3D printing the costs would honestly be very high.
02:41There are projects I've seen here like water drones that were built here and turned out completely waterproof and worked
02:50well.
02:50It saved a lot of time and materials so honestly it's a huge advantage.
02:59Swahili D-Maker plans to establish 150 3D printing labs across Tanzania's 31 regions.
03:06The aim it says is to give more students, entrepreneurs and innovators access to the technology and skills needed to
03:14turn digital designs into physical products.
03:17With the
03:20You
03:21you
03:23you
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