( CNN ) -- Your head is pounding , burning with raging fever , your aching bones feeling like they weigh a ton . Covered in profuse sweating , your exhausted body shivers with teeth-chattering chills . For anyone who 's suffered through severe bouts of malaria , this is the nauseating roller coaster the disease typically wreaks on its victims . But now an award-winning innovation by two students in Burkina Faso could help reduce the devastating impact of the life-threatening disease , which is caused by parasites that are spread to humans through the bites of infected mosquitoes . Moctar Dembele , who is from Burkina Faso , and Gerard Niyondiko , from Burundi , have used locally sourced herbs and natural ingredients to create a soap they say repels mosquitoes , in order to prevent malaria . Read this : Innovation to save lives in Africa . Dubbed `` Fasoap , '' the innovation was awarded the $ 25,000 Grand Prize in the Global Social Venture Competition ( GSVC ) , in April . Launched by Berkeley MBA students , the GSVC is a global competition designed to help budding entrepreneurs transform their ideas into businesses that will have a positive social impact . Fasoap is made from shea butter , essential lemongrass oil and other ingredients that are still a secret . `` After using the soap , it leaves on the skin a scent that repels mosquitoes , '' says Niyondiko , who studies with Dembele at the International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering in Ouagadougou , the capital of Burkina Faso . `` In addition , waste water products contain substances that prevent the development of mosquito larvae , because the sanitation problem in Africa is one of the causes of mosquito vectors of malaria . '' Read this : Off-road bikers race to save lives in rural Africa . About half of the world 's population is at risk of malaria , according to the World Health Organization . The disease 's impact is mostly felt in the world 's poorest countries ; in 2010 , there were an estimated 660,000 malaria deaths , 90 % of which occurred in sub-Saharan Africa , mostly among children under five years old . In many of these countries , apart from its high toll on human life , malaria also exacts a heavy burden on their economies . Household budgets are being squeezed by high fees for drugs and treatments , doctors ' fees and transportation to clinics ; marginalized communities are trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty due to lost productivity or income because of the disease ; state funds are being drained to pay for the maintenance of health facilities and research programs . Read this : Africa catching 'Western diseases ' Niyondiko says their anti-malaria soap company , which is called Faso Soap , will help address all these issues . `` In our country the majority of the population lives below the poverty line , '' he explains , adding that most people ca n't afford to regularly buy medicines and products such as anti-mosquito creams , sprays or protective nets . `` So we thought of a repellent and larvicidal mosquito soap which will be accessible and affordable to the majority of the population , seeing that soap is a commodity product and especially not going to add other additional costs to the population , '' says Niyondiko . `` Our soap will fulfill the desire of the population to be clean , as well as protect them from malaria , without any additional cost to them . '' The team is now working on the optimization of the soap through clinical trials , with the aim of entering the market by 2015 , starting from Burkina Faso . `` Our goal is that our soap is widely distributed to reach the largest possible number in sub-Saharan Africa and other parts of the world affected by malaria , '' says Niyondiko . `` This is to say that NGOs , companies will be our potential customers for the distribution of our products . After the victory obtained at Berkeley there are so many NGOs , companies who spoke to a partnership with us in order to distribute our soap in different parts , even outside Africa . '' James Logan , medical entomologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine , says : `` The concept of putting a repellent into a soap is appealing as it can often be difficult to get people to use a topical repellent . '' He cautions , however , that there needs to be published scientific evidence that the soap can successfully reduce malaria transmission . To win the GSVC Grand Prize , Niyondiko , 35 , and Dembele , 22 , beat 650 competitors from nearly 40 countries . Their victory marks the first time an entry from Africa has won the competition . `` It is a feeling of joy and pride for us and for Africa in general , '' says Niyondiko of their win . `` It also shows that in Africa we are not back ( ward ) and that Africa 's problems can be solved by Africans themselves . ''
Two students have created a soap they say repels mosquitoes . `` Faso Soap '' was the winner of this year 's Global Social Venture Competition . One student is from Burkina Faso , the other from Burundi . The two are now working on developing their own version of the soap and hope to sell it in Africa as well.