Nigeria based telemedicine startup, Zuri Health secures $1.2 million pre-seed round for African expansion

Zuri Health, a digital healthcare firm, has raised $1.3 million in seed capital to further develop its digital platform, expand its product offerings, and commence operations in additional areas across Africa.

DOB Equity, Launch Africa, and Founders Factory Africa led the $1.3 million investment, which also included V8 Capital, Platform Capital, Villgro Africa, Asime Ventures, and the Salik Family Trust. Dr. Akintoye Akindele, Chairman of Platform Capital, will join the advisory board as part of Platform Capital’s investment in this round.

“We are driven by the impact our service may have —to be a solution to Africa’s lack of adequate healthcare,” says Ikechukwu Anoke, CEO and Founder of Zuri Health. Most of Africa’s healthcare infrastructure is woefully inadequate, with excruciatingly high doctor-to-patient ratios. Many Africans are unable to afford healthcare services or live too far away from medical facilities. The situation is deteriorating as skilled healthcare personnel leave Africa in search of greener pastures.”

“We have a strong goal to democratize healthcare access and use technology to deliver high-quality, first-tier medical care.”

This was also made feasible as part of a move that will enable the business to provide affordable mobile-based healthcare via mobile platforms including SMS, WhatsApp, social media, and messengers. MTN, Safaricom, and Telkom (Kenya) have teamed with the company to connect doctors, medical labs, pharmacies, and hospitals with patients. Zuri Health operates in Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania, and Zambia, and has worked with 16+ major mobile network carriers in seven countries, resulting in over 400,000 SMS customers, 300 doctors, 27 lab and diagnostic centers, and 15 pharmacies.

Efforts to scale up affordable quality healthcare services in Africa continue to be a struggle. According to the World Economic Forum, Africa carries 25% of the world’s sickness burden but only has 2% of the world’s doctors.

Kenya has an estimated 10,500 licensed doctors, according to data from the Kenya Medical Practitioners & Dentists Council. To meet Kenya’s healthcare demand, each doctor would have to serve roughly 5,300 patients per year. Patients are also crowded into national-level hospitals in urban regions due to understaffing in lower-level facilities in more rural portions of the country. Longer patient wait times and severe strain to satisfy even the most basic healthcare demands, let alone urgent, complex cases, come from this circumstance.

“We are pleased to support the growth of Zuri Health as it builds an innovative and scalable platform that will provide access to healthcare for millions of rural and urban people,” said Saskia van der Mast, Co-CEO of Nairobi-based Dutch private equity firm DOB Equity.

Ikechukwu Arthur Anoke and Daisy Isiaho, both Nigerians, founded Zuri Health after experiencing personal health issues that were resolved through telemedicine. They recognized this as a chance to create a cost-effective, personalized, and convenient customer journey for mobile subscribers looking for healthcare.