Susu, a health tech startup, secures €2m to promote affordable healthcare for every African

Susu, a global health-tech business dedicated to making healthcare accessible and affordable to all Africans, has raised €2 million in a pre-seed round.

Angel investors, grant financing from BPI France, the French government’s public investment bank, and debt were used to raise the funds.

Bola Bardet, Laurent Leconte (Chief Technology Officer), and Sandrine Egron (Chief Operations Officer) created Susu in 2019 to serve thousands of Africans. Susu provides patients with bundled health services that include pregnancy, child care, and chronic disease treatment, as well as planned, long-term health assistance to enable effective monitoring of their health conditions.

One of Susu’s angel investors, Christopher Neves, a senior executive with expertise in international insurance firms, spoke about the money, stating he saw the project’s promise and the team’s ability to execute it.

“I have been following Susu since the beginning of the project. And I see its huge potential, focused on building a solution to provide access to affordable healthcare in Africa through technology.”

Christopher Neves, angel investor

Susu’s services

According to studies, medical insurance penetration in Africa is less than 3%, leaving 97 percent of the people to pay for medical bills out of their own pockets. This is clear on social media, where people frequently come to seek medical assistance.

Susu aims to address this issue by assisting beneficiaries with their healthcare journeys through care bundles and an integrated approach that better connects patients, their families, and healthcare professionals.

Susu was inspired by a tragedy: Bola’s father died as a result of his medical condition being mismanaged.

Users of Susu have access to a system that facilitates collective finance – the payment of a service by a group of people, whether close relatives or members of the African diaspora. Customers who wanted to contribute financially to a beneficiary’s health care demanded this function, therefore it was included.

Health bundles (a combination of medical and logistical services) are also available, as well as access to a high-quality medical network hand-picked by Susu’s experts.

The health tech firm, which is currently operating in Senegal, Cameroon, France, and the Ivory Coast, had a 400 percent revenue growth rate and a 5x rise in customer base in 2021, demonstrating the great demand for their services.

Expansion

Susu plans to introduce the service in six new countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria and Ghana, thanks to its recent funding. It’s also working on new care bundles, including a maternity care bundle, to help pregnant mothers and their babies live longer.

There are also plans to expand the company’s personnel and add additional capabilities to the technological platform. Bola Bardet believes that the use of technology in the health sector will be just as prevalent as it is in the finance sector.

“Just as mobile payment options have enhanced financial inclusion, technology will play a huge role in offering solutions to the issues that healthcare systems across the continent confront over the coming decade.”