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VivaTech: Sanofi to hold AfricaTech pitch session online


Following the cancellation of the 2020 edition of VivaTech that was to be held in Paris, Sanofi will on June 11th organise an online pitch session as part of its AfricaTech Challenge.
The objective is to ensure that Sanofi is continually committed to encouraging innovation in Africa, improving access to healthcare and transforming the health ecosystem throughout the continent.
For this 3rd edition, Sanofi received 268 applications from 34 countries across the continent registering a 20.7% increase in applications as compared to 222 applications last year. 11 finalists were selected based on their project maturity, early results, the relevance of their solution, market potential, business model and the skills and expertise of their team.
This year, a total of 22 applications were made from East Africa with 18 applications received just from Kenya, three from Uganda and one from Tanzania.
Mama Prime, a Kenyan health fintech company has been selected to take part in the finals of the competition which will be held online on the 11th of June 2020. Mama Prime is a flexible, automated financial planning platform where pregnant mothers and their friends or family can make flexible piecemeal payments that go towards meeting the cost of their delivery, and, optionally, post-natal care. Mama Prime provides a targeted financial planning facility that enables pregnant mothers and their friends or family to own the process and plan for their delivery.

The 4 challenges and the 11 selected startups are:

Challenge #1: How to support patients with a digital health book in order to access information and make decisions?
  • Bypa-ss (Egypt) is digitizing healthcare information exchange through its platform HealthTag that allows patients to get their diagnosis, latest check-ups, medical scans as well as test results.
  • Keeplyna (Tunisia) is an eHealth platform for telemedicine. It offers a free digital medical book to all African citizens and includes all health information of all family members.
  • EYONE (Senegal) offers a shared medical file. Patients have their medical records in real-time everywhere and are connected to 35 online health professionals that have partnered with the startup.

    Challenge #2: How to help healthcare systems leapfrog from manual to smart logistics solutions at the point of care?
  • Doctor 4 Africa (India) is an integrated online platform offering a digital health solution in African countries. It connects patients to health care professionals in underserved communities where there is a shortage of specialists, so they can receive affordable quality care.
  • Mobilhealth International (Nigeria) is Africa’s first fully integrated telehealth electronic medical records and video app. Its mission is to use telemedicine to provide people in developing countries with access to quality healthcare services in the most cost and time effective way, anytime, anywhere.


    Challenge #3: How to improve financing and impact of innovative health solutions in Africa?
  • SOSO CARE (Nigeria) is a low-cost digital tool enabling 100 million Nigerians to access health insurance and care in 1,170 clinics.
  • MamaPrime (Kenya) is a health fintech company that enables mothers and their families to prepay for their prenatal & postnatal care and child wellness services in instalments throughout their pregnancy.
  • JokkoSanté (Senegal) is a digital payment platform that secures the use of money intended for health, with a new payment method. It can also be used to manage drug traceability and online prescriptions.


    Challenge #4 - Sanofi Espoir Foundation: How to improve maternal and neonatal health in sub-Saharan Africa? 
  • Teheca (Uganda) connects new and expectant mothers to qualified nurses for at home post-natal checkups and supports by using low cost and low-tech solutions. The accessibility increase to post-natal cares aims a timely identification and a referral of life-threatening complications during the post-natal period.
  • The University Agency Innovation (Cameroun) is a hub of scientific, technological and enterprise-based innovations. Its spin-off AUI Techno designs and produces an interactive infant incubator connectable to doctors’ smartphones, in order to reduce the neonatal mortality rate.
  • Natal Cares (Nigeria) is an integrated solution providing healthcare, medical monitoring and emergency services to at-risk pregnant women and nursing mothers belonging to disconnected rural communities.


    The 4 winning startups will be announced at the end of this event and Sanofi will then evaluate long term partnership opportunities. 

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