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Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals has launched digital platforms to streamline the pharmaceutical supply chain in Nigeria, a model that can help cut losses and build climate resilience. The platforms let hospitals and pharmacies see what medicines are available, check prices, place large orders online and track deliveries as they happen.
Inefficient procurement systems create gaps that counterfeiters exploit. As a result, Africa's pharmaceutical sector reports big losses in the global trade in counterfeit pharmaceuticals, which is worth up to $200 billion annually.
These inefficiencies also carry a climate cost including excess transport miles and wasted medicines that release greenhouse gases when destroyed.
Our take: The future of African pharma growth lies in how fast it can respond to demand during health crises…Read more (2 min)
A total of six health startups secured venture funding to expand operations across the continent in the past month. Five of the startups, eFiche, Kosmotive, TanzMed, Drop Access and Zuri Health, secured funding to digitise primary healthcare and improve access to immunisation in rural underserved regions.
The companies have a range of innovations for health access including AI-powered primary care and telemedicine platforms, solar cold-chain devices, menstrual health solutions, pharmacy management tools and virtual hospitals across Africa.
According to Norah Magero, the founder of Drop Access which is based in Kenya, the funding will help secure global compliance for Vaccibox, a portable solar-powered vaccine delivery solution.
Our take: Africa’s health investors are showing a clear interest in rural delivery and practical innovation that offer faster solutions in healthcare…Read more (2 min)
In our quarterly policy tracker we note prominently that Africa CDC has launched new frameworks to support Africa’s health security amid climate change. It targets stronger national public health institutes and climate-resilient health systems. The plans provide policy blueprints to integrate technology and collaboration into national health strategies.
The two policies are the National Public Health Institutes in Africa: Development Plan 2025–2027 and the Climate Change and Health: Strategic Framework 2025.
Both policies aim to strengthen Africa’s health systems: The Climate Change and Health Framework builds climate-resilient systems, while the NPHI Plan supports every AU state to establish strong, well-resourced national public health institutes.
Our take: After years of fragmented systems and donor-driven programmes, new policies emphasise a focus on institutional strength and climate readiness…Read more (2 min)
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The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) partners with the Advancing Clinical Trials Excellence in Africa (AVAREF) to boost clinical trial application reviews in Africa
Events
🗓️ Participate in the World Health Expo in Kenya (October 22)
🗓️ Attend the Healthcare Innovation Summit in South Africa (October 22)
🗓️ Attend the International Conference on Public Health in SA (October 24)
Jobs
🧑⚕️ Be a Public Health Officer for the UN Voluntees (Comoros)
🧑⚕️ Apply for the Nutrition Programme Officer at WFP (Madagascar)
🧑⚕️ Become a Project Director for the CDC Health Programme (DRC)
Various
💉 AI power chatbots help prevent HIV in South Africa
💉 Tanzania accelerates digital health shift
💉 AI machines ease TB diagnostic backlog
Seen on LinkedIn
Mike Adeyemi Lawal, an infectious disease specialist at Doctors Without Borders, says, “About 80% of healthcare needs in rural Africa remain unmet, a gap that digital health solutions are uniquely positioned to bridge. However, the benefits of this technology are hindered by persistent inequalities in access to technology, reliable connectivity, and digital literacy.”__________