In a bold boost to the continent’s digital health revolution, the Innovations in Healthcare Initiative (i3) has awarded $1.5 million in funding to seven pioneering African healthtech startups.
This move reinforces a growing trend: health innovation is no longer confined to hospitals and labs — it’s now being driven by startups with smart phones, APIs, and access to underserved communities.
What is i3?
i3 (Investing in Innovation Africa) is a pan-African program backed by major health development partners, including:
- Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
- MSD (known as Merck & Co., Inc. in the US and Canada)
- USAID
- African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD)
Its mission: accelerate African startups solving last-mile health delivery problems.
Who Got Funded?
While the full list of winners spans diverse regions and solutions, these seven startups stood out for:
- Using data and logistics to reach underserved populations
- Building platforms for e-pharmacy, diagnostics, and telemedicine
- Solving problems like medicine shortages, affordability, and rural access
Examples include:
- Waspito (Cameroon): Connecting patients to doctors via short videos
- Chefaa (Egypt): GPS-based e-pharmacy for chronic patients
- Susu (Ivory Coast): Financing healthcare subscriptions for families
Why This Matters for Africa
60% of Africa’s population lives in rural areas, but 80% of healthcare investment is still concentrated in urban centres.
These startups are bridging the infrastructure gap, not with buildings, but with platforms.
And the $1.5M isn’t just cash it comes with:
- Access to partnerships with donors, corporates, and governments
- Visibility at global investor showcases
- Plug-in opportunities for scale
HealthTech is FinTech in Disguise
Behind many of these startups is a familiar theme: payments, insurance, credit, and logistics.
That’s why investors love healthtech it merges:
- Financial inclusion
- Data collection
- Supply chain digitization
You’re not just backing health, you’re backing platforms with monetizable infrastructure.
What to Watch
- Will these startups attract follow-on VC funding?
- Can they scale beyond grants into revenue-driven growth?
- Will African healthtech see the same investor boom as fintech did in 2019–2022?
Financial Juggernut Take
This is not charity, it’s early-stage infrastructure investing.
The future of African healthcare might be delivered by app, not ambulance.
