SA's DNA entrepreneur finalist in UK National Business Awards
South African entrepreneur Avi Lasarow, whose company is managing the DNA identification process of the victims who died in the Johannesburg-to-Tripoli Libyan plane crash earlier this year, is a finalist in the "Entrepreneur of the Year" category of the UK's National Business Awards (www.nationalbusinessawards.co.uk) for the second year running.
Lasarow is one of only 10 finalists in the category, and was chosen for his professional and sensitive handling of the process of identifying aircraft crash victims through DNA. Trimega Laboratories acted swiftly once the work was confirmed by the Libyan authorities and within a matter of days had DNA samples of all the passengers and crew who died when the plane went down at Tripoli airport. The samples are being matched to relatives to ensure that each and every family is treated with dignity and that they can be certain they are taking the remains of their deceased loved ones home for burial.
Honoured
Lasarow said it was an honour to be a finalist. "The standard of applications was exceptionally high and to be among only 10 business people from around the whole of the UK selected in the entrepreneur category is marvellous. It's especially gratifying because the work done by Trimega Laboratories both in the UK and South Africa is immensely important. Our DNA work is vital; in the case of the plane crash giving the families of victims some closure. Drug and alcohol testing also ultimately saves lives and the systems Trimega has developed are state-of-the-art."
Commenting on the calibre of entries, National Business Awards Judges‚ chairman Philip Forrest said: "The economic climate continues to present UK businesses with an unprecedented challenge and it is therefore encouraging that the entries in this year's National Business Awards have shown no drop in quality or performance. Congratulations to all finalists for demonstrating great strength in the ability to adapt and innovate quickly which no doubt reflects the resilience and optimism that are the hallmarks of UK enterprise."
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on 9 November 2010, at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.
