The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced the 30 African startups linked to the health sector that will be part of the first class of the “Investing in Innovation (i3)” funding program, a pan-African support initiative for innovative projects on the continent.
The i3 program is further sponsored by Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD), the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa, AUDA-NEPAD and AmerisourceBergen, and brings together major African donors, industry and institutions to initiate a new way of doing business. to support African-led innovations in the health sector.
Selected healthcare supply chain startups will receive a $50.000 grant and support to catalyze growth-oriented partnerships with donors, industry and institutions.
The 30 selected startups come from 14 African countries. In start-up and growth stages, these projects are delivering new solutions for device and drug distribution, inventory management and finance, authentication, traceability, medical waste management and much more – demonstrating that solutions built in Africa are ready to help. transforming access to health products in many ways.
The 47% of startups chosen are led by women (which the program defines as having at least one woman with an equity stake and an active executive leadership role), and 30% of projects operate in French-speaking Africa.
"Digitally enabled and locally led innovations have enormous potential to help address the challenges of accessing medicines for historically underserved patients in Africa. We are thrilled to see strong female leaders at the helm of many of these start-ups, as we know that innovation ecosystems are strengthened by diversity.“, said Ann Allen, senior representative of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
BUT: Egyptian startup arrives in South Africa, due to the great need for mental health services
Selected companies are, in alphabetical order: Chekkit Technologies, Disrupt Pharma Tech Africa (Medsaf), DrugStoc Ehub Limited, Erith Health Services, Gricd, LifeBank, Lifestores Healthcare, OneHealth, ClinicPesa, Damu Sasa, The Pathology Network, Negus Med, Signalytic , Viebeg Technologies, Zuri Health, Xetova, Cure Bionics, DeepEcho, Dr. Sett, Infiuss Health Limited, Medevice, Meditect, Sobrus, Valorigo, Azanza Health, Appy Saude, Aviro Health, Contro, VaxiGlobal, Zinacare.
i3 is coordinated by Salient Advisory, SCIDaR and SouthBridge A&I and is operated by key technology hubs across the continent: CCHub for West Africa, Startupbootcamp for Southern Africa, IMPACT Lab for North and Francophone Africa, and Villgro Africa for East Africa. These hubs are responsible for the process of selecting and monitoring startups throughout the program.
For more information about the i3, click on here.
