One question sparked Bilal Ismail’s mission of hope: How to make an expensive, but essential, commodity available to everyone who needs it?

The question may be common, but finding its answer has revealed Ismail’s passion to make a difference in people's lives.

The biomedical engineer co-founded 'Bionic Limbs' in Cairo to design prosthetic limbs at an affordable cost.

He was later joined by a young ambitious group who shared his dream of improving lives by manufacturing inexpensive prosthetics that are practical, durable and comfortable.

The organisation first targeted workers who are often exposed to accidents and injuries that result in amputations, causing them to lose their jobs and hindering their future career prospects. Their inability to afford prosthetics kept them stagnant.

As part of “Bionic Limbs,” Ismail's team started designing a high-tech prosthetic hand using 3D printing technology, which provides prostheses at a more affordable cost than the traditional manufacturing methods.

Aiming to help as many people as possible, the team transformed the project into an 'open source' initiative, enabling users to download and print the 3D prosthetics individually or with help of the organisation.

The 'Bionic Limbs' team aspires to deliver free-of-charge prosthetic limbs anywhere in the world, starting with Africa, where approximately 80 per cent of injuries that result in amputation occur. The only obstacle on their way of expansion is funding. The project relies on private funding, which often limits its potential and prospects.

Ismail's ultimate dream is to set up small 3D printing institutions in cities and villages across the world that would train a few employees to take proper measurements and use the 3D printing technologies to maximise access to prostheses for people in need.

“We believe in the saying 'give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime'”, said Ismail. With that, the 'Bionic Limbs' team hopes to make an everlasting impact in less fortunate communities who will then be able to pay it forward and serve others.