Boehringer Ingelheim collaborates with local universities in development program for young professionals

Boehringer Ingelheim, one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies, has collaborated with Kenyatta and Strathmore Universities in Nairobi, Kenya to launch the Making More Health Venture4Change idea competition. The competition is an adaptable local and global development program that aims to unlock the creative potentials of young aspiring professionals by encourages participants to develop innovative, scalable and sustainable ground-breaking solutions on how to improve sanitation and hygiene for children and youths aged between 6-25 years. It further aims to foster ideas that create a holistic approach towards local communities’ engagement and empowerment. This goal will be achieved by co-creating with various experts and several partners from different sectors or businesses to discuss best practices in health and more specifically, on improving hygiene for the younger population across the country.

Lilian Mwaura (centre), Faheem Sadik and Juma Onyango (right) pose with their certificates after emerging winners in the Venture For Change Competition sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim

Speaking during the launch of the initiative, Sabine Emmerich, the Global lead of Making More Health Venture4Change programs at Boehringer Ingelheim said that the initiative provides a strong platform for innovation and partnerships. “This is a unique initiative that paves the way for stronger collaboration and partnership with the local community, supporting their entrepreneurial mind-set and supporting their inspiration and ambition of giving back to the community they live in.”  “Our aim is to create new opportunities through innovative approaches. By partnering with new talents, universities, professors, teachers, as well as employees, the output presented will contribute to the development of sustainable solutions for all participants and their communities,” she added.

In addition, Paul Ochieng, Dean of Students at Strathmore University noted, “In Kenya, social innovation is soaring, and we want to be able to accelerate that through collaborations and partnerships with organizations that add more value to the wider social infrastructure. The MMH Venture4Change Program allows participants to embrace top-level industry skills in multiple fields including business development, leadership presentation while also enhancing their social entrepreneurship skills. This will be coupled with teamwork skills as well as key learnings on the applications of innovation to drive strong impact.”

Further, Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Paul K. Wainaina: "Kenyatta University promotes the culture of innovation and entrepreneurship for the accelerated impact of new solutions, which is made better through partnerships such as the one with Boehringer Ingelheim, Innovations in Healthcare and Duke University"

About 25 students from Kenyatta and Strathmore University participated in a series of workshops focused on social innovation and entrepreneurship. The workshops integrated keynote speakers, social innovation advocates and practitioners. Participants worked in project teams and actively engaged in tackling group tasks and assignments that combine theory and practice.

As a part of the MMH initiative, Venture4Change incorporated modules that encourage disruptive thinking and identify new solutions and business models for students. It laid a definitive focus on collaboration, project sustainability, simple and efficient solutions, and employee engagement, among others.

MMH is a global initiative that seeks to promote social entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial thinking and doing by finding innovative business models that create a benefit for the wider society. The initiative is focussing on bringing together both business and social knowledge. This combination is to improve health in communities through identifying and supporting the most promising solutions to overcome health challenges.

At the end of the program, The 3 finalist teams will be given the opportunity to implement their ideas on the ground in partnership with MMH partners in Slums or rural areas of Kenya. Furthermore, the students will walk away with a sensitivity for social needs and top-level industry skills in the areas of global health, business development, pitching, leadership, presentation, and social entrepreneurship skills.

Kenya is home to one of the most established innovation ecosystems in Africa, where new investment projects are helping to create more sustainable businesses across the country. Boehringer Ingelheim, as a part of its commitment to fostering the next generation of innovators in healthcare, will continue to collaborate with start-ups, innovators, entrepreneurs, and academia to help bring their innovations to live and contribute to growing the innovation culture in the region.