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Tag: HealthTech

  • Africa HealthTech Summit to address digital transformation in healthcare

    Africa HealthTech Summit to address digital transformation in healthcare

    The third edition of the Africa HealthTech Summit will take place at the Kigali Convention Center from Tuesday, October 29, to Thursday, October 31, 2024. 

    Organised by Africa CDC and Smart Africa, this year’s summit aims to gather stakeholders, including ministers of health and ICT, national public health institutes, regulators, tech innovators, healthcare professionals, development partners, investors, and academics. The goal is to explore how digital transformation can reshape the future of healthcare across the continent.

    Read also: GE Healthcare’s new AI Lab will predict recurrence of aggressive breast cancer in patients

    Focus on emerging technologies for resilient health systems

    Under the theme ‘Innovating for Community Health, Unlocking the Power of AI’, the summit will delve into the potential of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, drones, and blockchain to address Africa’s pressing health challenges. By leveraging these technologies, the discussions will centre on strategies to strengthen health infrastructure, improve disease prevention and surveillance, and expand access to diagnostics and care.

    Jean Philbert Nsengimana, Chief Digital Advisor at Africa CDC, highlighted the critical role of technology in transforming healthcare, noting, “Digital transformation is not just an opportunity; it is a necessity for the future of healthcare in Africa.”

    The summit, according to Mr Nsengimana, will ensure that digital tools are adopted and maximised to build resilient health systems that can adapt to the challenges posed by evolving health threats.

    High-level participation and key sessions

    The summit’s official opening ceremony will feature a welcome address by Hon. Dr. Sabin Nsanzimana, Minister of Health Rwanda, a keynote address by H.E. Dr. Jean Kaseya, Director General of Africa CDC, and opening remarks by Lacina Koné, CEO of Smart Africa. Their remarks will touch on the importance of collaboration in achieving sustainable improvements in healthcare delivery and digital innovation.

    Throughout the three-day summit, sessions will explore various aspects of digital health, including connected diagnostics and Africa’s integrated disease surveillance system. These discussions aim to bolster early detection capabilities and strengthen responses to health threats across the continent. 

    The agenda will also cover how technology can streamline supply chains, ensuring more efficient distribution of essential medicines and resources.

    Nsengimana stressed the significance of such discussions, stating, “By embracing these digital tools, we can ensure that no community is left behind in our efforts to improve health systems.” 

    The sessions will provide a platform for stakeholders to share insights and explore how to integrate digital solutions into existing healthcare structures.

    Building capacity and advancing digital health initiatives

    A key focus of the summit is on enhancing the skills of health workers to adapt to digital tools and technologies. Training sessions and workshops will emphasize the use of AI in clinical decision-making, as well as innovative approaches to digitized primary care. These methods are designed to improve access to quality health services, particularly in underserved communities where traditional healthcare delivery methods have often fallen short.

    The summit will also spotlight initiatives like the Africa Digital Health Index and Healthconnekt Africa, which aim to strengthen health data governance and create more efficient healthcare systems across the continent. These projects are pivotal to driving progress toward universal health coverage, ensuring that data-driven solutions lead to better decision-making and targeted health interventions.

    Read also: Technovate Fest 2024: Stakeholders push for inclusive AI solutions to Africa’s challenges at Technovate Fest 2024

    Driving long-term impact in Africa’s health sector

    The Africa HealthTech Summit seeks to build a stronger healthcare sector that can adapt to the rapidly changing technological landscape. By uniting diverse stakeholders, the event aims to create a foundation that supports sustainable innovation in healthcare, ultimately improving health outcomes for millions of Africans. 

    “This event is more than a gathering—it is a movement toward a future where technology enables healthier lives for all Africans,” said Mr Nsengimana to clarify the summit’s vision.

    With its focus on emerging technologies, capacity-building, and collaboration, the Africa HealthTech Summit is set to play a pivotal role in guiding the digital transformation of the continent’s healthcare landscape. It offers a unique opportunity for stakeholders to collaborate on solutions that address both current and future health challenges, shaping a more equitable and efficient healthcare system for the continent.

  • Flat6Labs funds African tech startups with $95 million

    Flat6Labs funds African tech startups with $95 million

    The African Seed Fund, a new $95 million seed fund for the African tech startup ecosystem, has been created by Flat6Labs, the top seed investor in MENA (ASF). This fund is intended to support early-stage ICT firms in Africa as they grow and flourish.

    The Africa Seed Fund (ASF) will prioritize investing in the northern, western, and eastern regions of the continent. Ramez El-Serafy and Dina El-Shenoufy, the general partners, will be in charge of it.

    Ramez El-Serafy stated, “We are pleased about the Africa Seed Fund.” Technology and innovation investments are lucrative in Africa. Business opportunities exist on the continent. Our experience will help African startup owners build successful companies that can attract outside financing.

    Flat6Labs plans to invest US$150K to US$500K in 160 early-stage tech startups (Pre-Seed to Pre-Series A) through the Africa Seed Fund over the next five years. The Flat6Labs Africa Seed Program will give experienced businesses seed tickets separately.

    However, these startups must be concentrated on having an impact that quickens digital inclusion through the use of information technologies and sectors that solve social and environmental issues, such as HealthTech, FinTech, EdTech, GreenTech, AgriTech, ClimateTech, and others.

    Read also: Lagos-based EchoVC launches $8 million “pilot” blockchain seed fund

    About Flat6Labs

    Flat6Labs, a company founded more than a decade ago, has made major investments in companies with a focus on technology. Nowadays, it exists in Egypt, Lebanon, Tunisia, Bahrain, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, which is a total of seven nations. It supports entrepreneurs in their early stages, from Pre-Seed to Pre-Series A, with a range of investment ticket sizes between US$50K and US$500K.

    Flat6Labs has a proven track record of investing in potential North African entrepreneurs across the whole African continent, having invested more than $16 million in firms and raising more than $191 million in follow-on funding. As a result of its first two rounds of funding, over 2,500 direct jobs and 80,000 indirect jobs have been created in Egypt and Tunisia.

    Additionally.  Flat6Labs is planning a global rollout that will take the company to countries including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, and Senegal.

    African Seed Fund Program

    The Africa Seed Fund (ASF) is an initiative launched by Flat6Labs with the backing of the GIZ on behalf of the German Government, the Egyptian Agricultural Innovation Project (AIP), and the Scaling Digital Agricultural Innovations through Startups project (SAIS).

    It is projected that with the significant influx of funds from the ASF, more than 14,000 new jobs will be created, more than 1,200 founders with 20% female participation will receive support, and more than $700 million in income might be produced.

    African Seed Fund Program operations

    The program helps entrepreneurs grow their enterprises. Seed investment, local business support, seasoned local mentors, and regulatory and logistical support will help selected startups scale. ASF can reinvest in portfolio firms in later rounds.

    “The Africa Seed Fund is well-positioned to be a catalyst for generating long-term good change that the youth of Africa actually deserve and for giving resources to the brightest of them while speeding the future of the African continent,” says General Partner Dina el-Shenoufy.

    With a hybrid methodology that blends virtual cohort connections across the fund region with real on-the-ground interactions in local marketplaces, the program adapts to be regional.

    Before the end of 2023, the startups chosen for the initial investments will be disclosed. There will be two cohorts per year, each consisting of 10 to 15 startups.

  • BioNTech acquires Tunisian startup InstaDeep for £562 million

    BioNTech acquires Tunisian startup InstaDeep for £562 million

    BioNTech SE plans to acquire Tunisian-founded, United Kingdom-based InstaDeep for up to £562 million (about $680 million). This will be BioNTech SE’s largest deal to date.

    According to the Financial Times, the German vaccine manufacturer plans to employ the machine learning capabilities of InstaDeep to better its drug discovery process. This will include the development of personalised medicines that are targeted to a patient’s cancer.

    According to the CEO of BioNTech, Uur Ahin, “The acquisition of InstaDeep allows us to incorporate the rapidly evolving AI capabilities of the digital world into our technologies, research, drug discovery, manufacturing and deployment processes. Our aim is to make BioNTech a technology company where AI is seamlessly integrated into all aspects of our work.”

    BioNTech intends to apply computational techniques to generate tailored medications for people with cancer.

    InstaDeep’s CEO, Beguir, said, “AI is progressing exponentially and our mission at InstaDeep has always been to make sure it benefits everyone. We are very excited to join forces and become one team with BioNTech, with whom we share the same culture of deep tech innovation and focus on positive human impact.”  

    “Together, we envision building a world leader that combines biopharmaceutical research and AI with the aim to design next-generation immunotherapies that enhance medical care — thus, helping fight cancer and other diseases,” he added.

    Read also: Chipper Cash to acquire Zambian Zoona

    Background on the BioNTech-InstaDeep transaction

    It is believed that BioNTech will pay an upfront sum of £362 million, which will be a combination of cash and an undisclosed amount of BioNTech shares. 

    InstaDeep’s future success will determine whether or not the company receives the remaining £200 million, according to a statement released by the company.

    InstaDeep’s CEO, Beguir, discussed the company’s usage of reinforcement learning in an interview the previous year. 

    Reinforcement learning is a type of machine learning that assists in the formulation of optimization strategies and handles them simultaneously. 

    InstaDeep’s artificial intelligence technology has been put to use in a variety of contexts, including assisting a huge shipping corporation in effectively transporting thousands of containers to a railway station and automating the scheduling of 10,000 trains. 

    Other examples include the routing of components on a printed circuit board and the construction of sophisticated treatments using silicon.

    A moonshot solution to automate railway scheduling is now being developed by the company in collaboration with Deutsche Bahn, which is the most important train operator in Europe.

    In 2019, InstaDeep and BioNTech entered into a multi-year strategic relationship to construct a combined artificial intelligence innovation centre. Within this lab, the companies planned to use the most recent developments in AI and ML to create breakthrough immunotherapies. 

    Because of this long-term cooperation, InstaDeep has become the focal point of a growing portfolio of activities centred on artificial intelligence and machine learning at BioNTech. This acquisition is the consequence of that partnership.

    Access Bank to Acquire Angola-based Finibanco Majority Stake

    Some Info on InstaDeep

    InstaDeep was established in 2014 by Karim Beguir and Zohra Slim. In January of last year, the company successfully raised $100 million as part of its Series B investment, which Alpha Intelligence Capital and CDIB sponsored. BioNTech was one of the participating investors, together with Chimera Abu Dhabi, DB Digital Ventures of Deutsche Bahn, and Google, among others.

    Offices have been set up in Paris, Tunis, Lagos, Dubai, and Cape Town by an enterprise AI firm with headquarters in Tunis and London. The company uses advanced machine learning techniques to bring AI to apps that are used inside a business setting.

    According to a statement released by the company, InstaDeep’s 240-person team will continue to offer its artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning services to other businesses, including Google and Nvidia. 

    It is anticipated that the deal between BioNTech and InstaDeep will be finalised within the first half of 2023, provided that the standard closing conditions are met and that regulatory approvals are obtained.

  • CardinalStone Capital invests $6 million in AfyA Care

    CardinalStone Capital invests $6 million in AfyA Care

    As part of the company’s Series A capital round, West African private equity fund manager CardinalStone Capital Advisers (CCA) has announced a $6 million investment in Nigeria’s healthtech firm AfyA Care.

    In Nigeria, AfyA Treatment offers integrated healthcare services, such as hospital care, health insurance, and medical device services. The investment exemplifies CCA’s goal of supporting high-potential growth companies that may both have a good impact on communities and provide investors with long-term, attractive returns.

    According to an EY report, Nigeria’s healthcare system is severely underdeveloped, with a patient-to-bed ratio of 2,000:1 as opposed to the peer average of 1,000:1 and a low health insurance penetration of 5%. Over the next five years, AfyA Care is well-positioned to take advantage of these market prospects by first solidifying the Lagos market before expanding to important cities in Nigeria and West Africa. In order to transform healthcare delivery in Nigeria and beyond, the firm will use the funds to strengthen its skilled talent pool, expand its hospital brands, scale its Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) and develop its health tech solutions. 

    Read also: HealthTech Startup, Lifestores Healthcare, Secures $3 million pre-Series A Funding Round

    Femi Ogunjimi, a Partner CardinalStone Capital Advisers, said, “We are always keen to partner with companies that have proven the capacity to disrupt and transform industries. Given the significant gaps in healthcare provision in Nigeria as well as sub-Saharan Africa more broadly, it was important to collaborate with people who deeply understand the industry, the urgency, and the scale of the problem and are well-equipped to put in the work to deliver the results. We look forward to supporting the team at AfyA Care as they seek to build a healthcare ecosystem for diverse segments of the market and are excited to see where AfyA Care goes in five years.”  

    The Need for AfyA Care

    AfyA Care was established in 2019 with a mission to improve access to and the cost of healthcare in Nigeria. AfyA Care is developing vertically integrated healthcare institutions and optimising delivery models that serve its target market segments by aggregating hospital capacity and demand. It targets low-mid and mid-high-end hospitals, health insurance, and health tech businesses. To cater to its low-to-mid market customers, the company maintains a network of 215 beds under the R-Jolad Hospital name. To serve the mid-high-end market, it is also building a 140-bed hospital under the proposed Oakwood Medical Centre brand.

    Remedial Health, a Nigerian digital startup receives $4.4 million in seed funding

    Tosin Runsewe, CEO of AfyA Care, comments on the new collaboration with CCA, “We are delighted to announce our partnership with CardinalStone Capital Advisers. CCA has been instrumental not only in securing the funding to build capacity but also in lending their expertise to execute the vision for AfyA Care. Our plans for expansion are supported by decades of expertise across industries, and we are excited to be working with a firm that supports our vision to transform the future of healthcare in Nigeria and beyond.” 

    The fourth investment by CCA from its $64 million CCA Growth Fund (CCAGF), which focuses on growth-stage SMEs in Nigeria and Ghana, was made in AfyA Care. Its portfolio also includes the businesses i-Fitness, Appzone, and Quality Foods Africa.

  • HealthTech Startup, Lifestores Healthcare, Secures $3 million pre-Series A Funding Round

    HealthTech Startup, Lifestores Healthcare, Secures $3 million pre-Series A Funding Round

    Lifestores Healthcare, a health-tech startup focused primarily on delivering quality healthcare service to Nigerians, has just secured $3 million in a pre-Series A investment that was oversubscribed. This round was not only done by Lifestores Healthcare only Health54, and Aruwa Capital Management jointly led it with other important investors.

    Recall that a report made by National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHDA) earlier this year (2022) stated that more than 70% of the medications prescribed in Nigeria were of poor quality. The report also said that many Nigerians lacked access to quality healthcare services.

    Possibly the above reasons led Andrew Garza (COO) and Bryan Mezue (CEO to form the Lifestores Healthcare service. Lifestores Healthcare is an online pharmacy platform that connects and digitizes pharmacies to increase access to primary healthcare services. It is not just an online platform, it also runs a chain of retail pharmacies, but its objective is to employ technology to reshape the fragmented pharmaceutical retail sector.

    Read also: Vezeeta, healthcare platform obtains fresh capital for expansion

    How Lifestores Healthcare Will Use This Funding

    Lifestores will use the money to increase their presence in Nigeria, improve their software, and expand their clientele. Additionally, the senior management, marketing, and engineering teams will develop. This is because Lifestores plans to expand its audience in 2023 and wants to reach 400,000 patients, quadrupling its current 100,000 patient base.

    To encourage expansion, Lifestores will introduce new technological features as part of its B2B offerings and establish a new production plant in Lagos. These features include patient management initiatives, AI-driven predictive ordering, pharmacy management software, and improved finance alternatives.

    The reason for this funding and expansion plan by Lifestores Healthcare is mainly because of the statistics of mortality that have surrounded Nigerians and Africans in general. According to the Brazzaville Foundation, a non-profit organization headquartered in London, 120,000 Africans pass away annually.

    Furthermore, Nigeria, which tops all African countries in terms of the annual number of citizens lost to fake pharmaceuticals, is also the most well-known market for counterfeit goods in the developing world, according to Punch. So, these are just a few of the latest statistics about the health system in Nigeria.

    Another reason for this urgent expansion plan by Lifestores Healthcare is its competitors’ success in the Nigerian market. For example, OGApharmacy has more than 10% of Nigeria’s pharmacies registered as customers and has experienced a 25% monthly market gain.

    Investors Are Now Confident About Investing In HealthTech Startup

    Nigerian entrepreneurs have emerged during the past ten years with solutions in various industries, including financial services, logistics, and agriculture. However, as startups seek to create viable businesses around existing gaps in health services while leaving a lasting impression, the health tech sector is also gaining recognition.

    Nigerians, as in many other African nations, neighborhood pharmacies play a crucial role as their main point of contact with the local medical system due to a lack of doctors, nurses, and hospitals. By increasing supply chain efficiency, Lifestores Healthcare can reach thousands of neighborhood pharmacies and small-scale chemist stores.

    Because they are often managed as independent stores and order medications through intermediaries such as merchants rather than directly from manufacturers, local pharmacies confront several issues caused by inefficient supply chains.

    The main goal of Lifestores is to eliminate these inefficiencies through better inventory control and purchasing. Lifestores gives business owners a way to buy goods more simply and at lower prices by letting small retailers pool their orders thanks to its access to drug makers. “We want to make sure people are buying from the best source, which translates into better costs and better quality,” says Andrew Garza, the chief operating officer.

    Remedial Health, a Nigerian digital startup receives $4.4 million in seed funding

    Ken Ahaotu, a seasoned Nigerian pharmacist who founded Oak Pharmacies in Abuja, the nation’s capital, has firsthand knowledge of the system’s difficulties. He is also a co-founder of the Lifestores Healthcare. According to him, Lifestores Healthcare spent its first several years of operation managing a network of pharmacies to grasp better the key problems facing the sector. ”We then used that experience and learning to create a support service for other pharmacies,” says Bryan Mezue, Lifestores’ chief executive.

    Lifestores is pursuing an intensive model approach with thousands of pharmacies and chemists throughout the nation, commencing in Lagos, Nigeria’s financial hub, after evaluating its software offerings within its network.

    The early success of a Ghana-based HealthTech, mPharma, would probably have influenced Lifestores’ investors. mPharma has raised more than $20 million and has businesses in five African nations since its founding in 2013. The second-largest drugstore business in Kenya was acquired by mPharma in a historic deal last year. There is also significant investor interest in the Nigerian pharmacy market. In March 2018, Alta Semper Capital invested $18 million in HealthPlus, a Nigerian pharmacy, to help it expand its retail presence throughout West Africa.

    Lifestores, on the other hand, is aiming to grow a chain of pharmacies mostly through acquisitions.

    By growing a chain of pharmacies, they get in touch with the latest happenings and challenges that face the health sector, and Lifestores, along with important stakeholders (which may include investors), would settle it.

  • Remedial Health, a Nigerian digital startup receives $4.4 million in seed funding

    Remedial Health, a Nigerian digital startup receives $4.4 million in seed funding

    Remedial Health has closed a $4.4 million equity seed round. This helps the company move closer to its goal of expanding its operations all over Africa. The health-tech startup is currently attempting to break into the markets of East and West Africa. It also wants to speed up its growth across Nigeria and give its growing number of local pharmacies, PPMVs (Proprietary Patent Medicine Vendors), and hospitals in Nigeria access to financing so they can buy more inventory.

    The most recent fund was led by Global Ventures and included Tencent, Y Combinator, Cathexis Ventures, LightSpeed Venture Partners Scout Fund, Ventures Platform, Alumni Ventures, True Capital Management, and several angel investors, such as Guillaume Luccisano and Christopher Golda.

    Samuel Okwuada and Victor Benjamin started Remedial Health in 2020 with the goal of making it easier for people in Africa to get reliable, low-cost medications. They did this by using innovations in pharmaceutical procurement, inventory financing solutions, pharmacy operations and patient management solutions.

    Remedial Health, backed by YC, received $1 million in pre-seed funding in January to launch its PMR (patient medication records) and digital procurement platforms and make it simpler for neighbourhood pharmacies and Proprietary Patent Medicine Vendors (PPMVs) to access affordable and genuine retail medications. The firm also stated that it has the intention of operating in additional states in Nigeria, as it had only been in operation in six at the time.

    Read also: Afya Rekod and Medi-Science Partner on Kenyan Healthtech Delivery

    Okwuada said, “Since January, the number of customers on our platform has grown by more than six times.” He was talking about the growth of the healthtech startup. Customers always say that their favorite parts of our platform are how easy and effective our inventory financing is, how many different products they can find on our platform, and how efficient our procurement process is. Regardless of where our customers are located in Nigeria, they typically receive their orders within 24 hours. He added that the last mile of delivery is done by the company or partners, with help from its distribution hubs.

    “The introduction of our inventory finance product has also drawn more users to our website because they can use it to expand their enterprises and deal with the problem of rising costs.” According to Okwuada, since they released the product, their average basket size has increased by more than 50%, and more than 60% of their consumers use it.

    More about Remedial Health

    Remedial Health has many ways for local pharmacies, PPMVs, and hospitals to get affordable and reliable retail medications, such as its digital procurement and PMR (patient medication records) systems. With Remedial Health’s logistics network, validated drugs can be sent to a doctor’s office within 24 hours at prices that are the same as or better than those at an open-air medicine market. Not only can pharmacies and PPMVs use credit to buy goods, but they can also use it to give their employees loans and salary advances.

    Since January 2022, Remedial Health’s sales have grown by 600%, and the company now serves 16 of Nigeria’s 36 states. 

    This new investment will support the expansion of its services throughout the remainder of Nigeria, which will also lay the framework for an African-wide rollout in 2023.

    African Health Tech Startup Receives $7 Million in Funding

    Observations

    The cost of medications has significantly increased in Nigeria as a result of the effects of several worldwide events over the past three years, including the COVID-19 epidemic and growing inflation. These price increases put more pressure on neighbourhood pharmacies and Proprietary Patent Medicine Vendors (PPMVs), who serves as the majority of Nigerians’ primary source of medications, to strike a balance between the need to provide life-saving medications to their communities and the need to operate their businesses successfully. Additionally, there is the issue of an opaque supply chain, which prevents manufacturers from having timely or complete visibility into what is happening at the front lines. As a result, pharmacies and PPMVs are frequently forced to settle for less than they require.

    Neighbourhood pharmacies, PPMVs, and hospitals can gain from group/bulk buying discounts, time savings, improved efficiency, access to credit to increase their earnings, and additional revenue from offering financial services and other primary healthcare services by utilizing Remedial Health’s tech-enabled platform. In order to make better decisions about forecasting, production, and distribution, manufacturers also benefit from an effective supply chain, a clear and quick route to market for their products, and real-time knowledge of product utilization.

    According to Global Ventures Principal Sacha Haider, there is a substantial market opportunity to serve neighbourhood pharmacies all over Africa. Over 80% of the yearly pharmaceutical sales market, worth over 70 billion dollars, is driven by just 500,000 community pharmacies in Nigeria. Through a tech-powered, pharmacy-focused healthcare network that has enabled over 25% in cost reductions at the point of treatment, the team at Remedial Health is proactively addressing obstacles, including price opacity, poor drug quality control, and a widely fragmented supply chain.

  • Afya Rekod and Medi-Science Partner on Kenyan Healthtech Delivery

    Afya Rekod and Medi-Science Partner on Kenyan Healthtech Delivery

    Afya Rekod, a startup based in Kenya, and Medi-science International Limited, announced a strategic partnership to revolutionize healthcare delivery in Africa and Europe through decentralization and better access to individual health data. 

    Reports say that the collaboration will allow patients, doctors, and hospitals to safely store health information on one platform using a digital application. This will give them access to a record of their medical history.

    Decentralization is the modification or transformation of current health care systems. Globally standardized processes and procedures are used in modern healthcare systems. As Afya Rekod illustrates, “If a person is ill, they see a doctor, offer insurance, or pay out of pocket following a test.” When that happens, they are given a prescription or medication generally suitable to address that consequence.

    The Afya Rekod and Medi-Science partnership will enable patients, doctors, and hospitals to securely host health information on one platform through a digital application, providing people with an accessible record of their health history. Patients and doctors can look at imaging data and test results using an app or a browser. They don’t have to return to the health centre to get the files.

    Afya Rekod recently showed off a blockchain-powered automated universal patient portal that tracks healthcare data and aims to make it easier for patients, medical experts, providers, and organizations to get care and treatment.

    The Universal Patient Portal is a blockchain-powered, consolidated, mobile health data passport that gives patients consistent access to their health information and real-time access to a marketplace of different health services within the ecosystem. It is paid for by subscriptions.

    John Kamara, CEO of Afya Rekod, said that the firm’s goal is to provide families with virtual access to their medical records anytime. He also said that the company’s partnership with Medi-science International Limited will make it easier for patients and doctors to share information.

    He also said, “Afya Rekod lets doctors look at and share data with other professionals, so they can make accurate diagnoses and decisions.” “The efficient closeness between doctors and patients provides for shorter wait times for consultations between doctors and patients, allowing for more effective patient care without the need for the patient to be in the hospital.”

    Sani Ahonsi, CEO of Medi-science International Limited, stated, “Our world’s healthcare system is in the early stages of being revolutionized.” For decades, our demographically overcrowded healthcare systems’ accessibility and efficiency in traditional modes of treatment and personal care have remained static, ” 

    This is why health care decentralization is a pressing issue. At Medi-science International Limited, we collaborate with contemporary healthcare systems, decentralizing their administrative processes to develop the highest quality of treatment at the lowest possible cost, added Ahonsi.

    Read also: Kenya’s Tech Startups Benefit from Enhanced Enterprises Financing

    About Afya Rekod

    Afya Rekod is a platform for keeping track of medical records that is meant to help people get better healthcare. The company’s platform has tools to store, manage, and analyze health information and manage hospitals and other facilities. It also enables companies, health providers, and medical professionals to communicate and connect with patients, even remotely, in real-time. It was started in Kenya in 2019 and now has offices in Nigeria, South Africa, Cameroon, Zambia, and the US.

    It is also a patient-centred platform that aims to let patients record, save, access, and keep track of their medical information. This has several advantages, including lowering the cost of follow-up testing.

    About Medi-Science International

    Medi-Science International was made so that products and technology could be made to solve both simple and complicated global health problems. onto(augmented reality), One of these technologies is MediLiVes, a cutting-edge telemedical system that challenges the status quo in medicine by fusing the best of conventional and alternative (integrative) healthcare dispensations onto a single platform. MediLiVes brings together some of the most innovative technologies, including AI (artificial intelligence), AR (augmented reality), (augmented reality), (augmented reality), big data, and blockchain. non-invasive, non-invasive, non-blood, non-fluid, non-surgical, non-magnetic, non-electrical protocol.

    They do business under the “Medilves UK” trade, which guarantees quality services for hiring, training, immigration, and finding jobs in healthcare delivery. They also offer specialized training for caregivers and anyone interested in alternative medicine. This lets health workers worldwide get the knowledge and credentials they need to work in the UK.

  • African Health Tech Startup Receives $7 Million in Funding

    African Health Tech Startup Receives $7 Million in Funding

    Over the course of two years, 60 health technology businesses will get funds and commercialization assistance from the pan-African “Investing in Innovation” program.

    The latest market intelligence report from healthcare consultancy company Salient Advisory, which highlights prospective African health tech start-ups in the supply chain, has just been released. 

    With funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and in response to these results, a group of international and regional organizations is excited to announce the beginning of a pan-African project to promote businesses’ impact, access to markets, and commercialization.

     

    More About Africa Health Tech StartUps Funding

    More than 80 health tech innovators from Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, and Nigeria are featured in Salient’s paper, “Innovations in Digitising Distribution of Health Products.” Companies like Lifestores, Maisha Meds, and Shelf Life pioneered tech-enabled methods of digitizing medicine distribution to underserved pharmacies, drug stores, clinics, and hospitals.

    These methods have seen rapid growth in recent years, mirroring trends in B2B e-commerce on the African continent. Additionally, innovators are displaying a growing interest in supporting rural supply chains, enhancing the accessibility of medications, and enhancing the resilience of supply chain operations.

     

    Read Also : Shoprite Group Launches SMME Division

     

    Investor interest has also been high; 36% of total investment revealed by innovators in the healthcare supply chain analyzed was raised in the previous year. Only 2% of recent funding, or $1.6 million, was raised by Black, female founders, demonstrating the persistence of exclusionary funding tendencies.

    The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD), the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa, AUDA-NEPAD, and AmerisourceBergen are launching a $7 million pan-African initiative to offer 60 promising early- and growth-stage companies risk-tolerant grants along with commercialization support to enable their impact at scale. This initiative is inspired by the progress and potential of African innovators in supply chain.

    Salient Advisory, SCIDaR, and SouthBridge A&I are in charge of organizing the Investing in Innovation (i3) initiative, which is operationalized by CCHub, Startupbootcamp, IMPACT Lab, and Villgro Africa. Applications are currently being accepted for the first batch of 30 companies. Mid-August marks the deadline for applications.

     

    What They Are Saying

    The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Africa Director, Cheikh Oumar Seydi, stated: “African health entrepreneurs have demonstrated an increased capacity to harness technology to streamline supply chains and advance access to medications.” It is time to promote these local innovations since they have the potential to alter how supply chains and healthcare systems operate. In order to collaboratively enhance African health systems and hasten the transition to universal health care, we are glad to be working with strong global and regional partners.

    AVP for Global Market Access and Sustainable Access Solutions at MSD, Dr. Abdullahi Sheriff, added the following commentary: “Technology-driven innovation in the distribution of health products across Africa has advanced significantly. To increase access to medications for everyone, the health supply chain must be stimulated and scaled for disruptive innovation. We at MSD are thrilled to work together on the i3 initiative because of this.

     

    AUDA-Dr. NEPAD’s Janet Byaruhanga, Senior Programme Officer for Health, added the following commentary: “The COVID-19 epidemic showed African inventors’ ability to use tech-enabled solutions to revolutionize drug distribution. In order to foster partnerships that strengthen the evidence, deploy innovation, improve policy environments, and facilitate crucial investments while generating worthwhile and significant employment across the continent, AUDA-NEPAD will continue to take advantage of its mandate and comparative advantage.

     

    Director of Salient Advisory Remi Adeseun commented on the report and the i3 program’s introduction

    As supply chain innovations work to improve access to high-quality pharmaceuticals, there has been significant progress over the past year. Our research offers tangible suggestions on engagement tactics to promote businesses’ growth and impact to investors, donors, and governments.

    We are thrilled to introduce the Investing in Innovation program, which will link promising businesses with clients who can fuel their impact and scalability, with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and other distinguished partners.

    Applications for the initiative can be submitted here by start-ups that distribute health products throughout Africa.