From the newsletter
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.
More details
In September funding, male-founded startups included eFiche, EXMGO and TanzMed, while Kosmotive was female-led. Drop Access and Zuri Health had gender-diverse founding teams. Most funding went to Eastern Africa. Two in Rwanda, two in Kenya and one in Tanzania. Egypt represented North Africa. Funding ranged from $100K to $500K, mainly through grants supporting digital and accessible healthcare solutions.
Drop Access is a health startup based in Kenya. It manufactures Vaccibox, a portable solar powered cool box for the delivery of vaccines and medical supplies in rural areas in Africa. The funding will help secure global compliance for Vaccibox.
Efiche, based in Rwanda, develops AI and data-driven tools that help healthcare professionals make faster, evidence-based decisions. Its platform integrates clinical data to enhance diagnosis accuracy and streamline hospital workflows.
It was funded in this round to digitise primary healthcare in underserved regions through a cloud-based EMR platform with AI decision support. It aims to improve clinical efficiency and patient outcomes across East Africa’s rural health systems.
TanzMED was also funded in September. It is a Tanzania-based digital health platform using AI to expand access to affordable care. It integrates telemedicine and ePharmacy tools with multilingual access and provides data-driven healthcare delivery for underserved communities across Africa.
Based in Kenya, Zuri Health runs a virtual hospital that connects patients across Sub-Saharan Africa to doctors through a mobile app and SMS. It offers affordable consultations, medicine delivery, lab bookings and ongoing care, making healthcare more accessible. It received funding to upscale this solution for underserved communities.
Egypt-based EXMGO was funded to support the digitisation of healthcare operations. It was backed through a six-figure investment following its acquisition by Duaya. Kosmotivec, a Rwanda based company received a grant to expand production of affordable, reusable menstrual pads and strengthen menstrual health education for women and girls.
Our take
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