News
African Health Tech Start-ups Prompting Launch of $7M Innovator Support Program

Healthcare consulting firm Salient Advisory has launched its latest market intelligence report highlighting promising African healthtech start-ups in supply chain.
Spurred by these findings, a consortium of global and continental organizations, with funding from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, are pleased to announce the launch of a pan-African initiative to support companies’ impact, access to markets and commercialization.
Salient’s report, titled ‘Innovations in Digitising Distribution of Health Products’, highlights more than 80 healthtech innovators in Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, and Nigeria.
Tech-enabled approaches to digitizing medicine distribution to underserved pharmacies, drug shops, clinics and hospitals, pioneered by companies such as Lifestores, Maisha Meds and Shelf Life, recorded rapid growth in the past year, mirroring trends seen in B2B e-commerce on the African continent.
Innovators are also demonstrating an increasing interest in powering rural supply chains, improving availability of medicines, and bolstering resilience of supply chain operations.
Investor interest has also been strong; 36% of all-time funding reported by health care supply chain innovators profiled was raised in the last 12 months. However, exclusionary funding trends remain entrenched: only 2% of recent funding was raised by Black, women founders, a total of just $1.6 million in 2021.
Inspired by the progress and potential of African innovators in supply chain, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, alongside Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD), the World Health Organisation Regional Office for Africa, AUDA-NEPAD and AmerisourceBergen, are launching a $7 million pan-African initiative to provide 60 promising early and growth-stage companies with risk-tolerant grants alongside commercialization support to power their impact at scale.
The program, called Investing in Innovation (i3), is coordinated by Salient Advisory, SCIDaR, and SouthBridge A&I and is operationalized with CCHub, Startupbootcamp, IMPACT Lab, and Villgro Africa. Applications for the first cohort of 30 companies are open now, at innovations in Africa website. Applications will close in mid August.
Cheikh Oumar Seydi, Director, Africa, at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, commented: “African health innovators have shown increasing capacity to leverage technology to optimize supply chains and advance access to medicines. Such local innovations have the potential to change how supply chains and health systems function – and it is time to support them.
“We are pleased to be collaborating with strong global and continental partners to jointly strengthen African health systems, and accelerate progress towards universal health coverage.”
Dr Abdullahi Sheriff, AVP, Global Market Access, Sustainable Access Solutions at MSD also commented: “There has been considerable progress in tech-driven innovation in health product distribution across Africa. Spurring and scaling disruptive innovation in health supply chain is key to expanding access to medicines for all. That’s why we, at MSD, are excited to collaborate on the i3 program.”
Dr Janet Byaruhanga, Senior Programme Officer – Health at AUDA-NEPAD also commented: “The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the capacity of African innovators to leverage tech-enabled solutions to transform medicine distribution.
“AUDA-NEPAD will continue to leverage its mandate and comparative advantage to foster partnerships that strengthen evidence, deploy innovation, enhance policy environments and facilitate critical investments, while creating valuable and high-impact jobs across the continent.”
Speaking on the launch of the report and i3 program, Director of Salient Advisory, Remi Adeseun said: “There has been considerable progress over the past year as supply chain innovations work to enhance access to quality medicines. Our report provides investors, donors, and governments with actionable recommendations on engagement strategies to advance companies’ growth and impact.
“With funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and along with our esteemed partners, we are excited to be launching the Investing in Innovation program to connect promising companies to customers who can power their impact and scale.”
News
SEC Urges State Governments to Explore Investment Opportunities in Capital Market

As part of strategies to harness the potentials inherent within the various states for wealth creation, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is to embark on investor education for state governments across the country.
Dr. Emomotimi Agama, the Director General of SEC, disclosed this during a meeting with a team from the World Bank Group and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in Abuja.
He stated that the Commission would approach the state governments to help them understand the many opportunities in the capital market, and strive to enhance their understanding of financial markets, investment strategies, and regulatory frameworks.
According to him, “Imagine setting up factories that will produce goods that can be exported and earning foreign exchange. A lot of Nigerians would be employed and that would lead to wealth creation and economic development.
“That is why the Commission will continue to emphasize education, because if they do not know, there is little they can do until they know. Sometimes it is not because they don’t want to do it, it is just because they don’t know and it is our responsibility to give this vital knowledge for wealth creation.There are some states in the country that are so rich but nothing is happening there. All of their wealth is in the ground.”
He added that the strategic approach will commence soon with the Executive Council of a state in northern Nigeria, to speak to them about the opportunities in the capital market.
“We will create guides, reports, and policy briefs that explain capital market opportunities for state governments, we will translate complex financial concepts into simple, actionable insights and we will use case studies from Nigerian states that have successfully raised capital through bonds or attracted investments in the capital market.
“We believe strongly that if we go out and speak to these people, get them into understanding exactly the benefits and how it is important, get them to manage their own assets meaningfully well, and harness them for greater economic growth for the states, things will begin to change, it is our responsibility to change the narratives and we will keep at it,” he said.
Speaking earlier, Mr. Tom Ceusters, Director, Treasury Market Operation IFC, said the delegation of the World Bank Group and IFC were on a two weeks mission to Nigeria to have deep conversations with regulators and organisations in the financial sector with a view to coming up with plans to help their endeavours.
News
Meta to Begin Layoffs Across All Operations from Today

Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, is set to implement company-wide layoffs starting Monday, February 10, 2025.
Notifications will begin at 5 a.m. local time in most countries, including the United States.
However, due to local regulations, employees in Germany, France, Italy, and the Netherlands will be exempt from these cuts.
Staff in over a dozen countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa will receive their notifications between February 11 and February 18.
The layoffs are expected to affect approximately 5% of Meta’s workforce.
They will target the company’s lowest performers in what is termed “performance terminations.”
This move is part of Meta’s broader strategy to streamline operations and focus on key areas of growth.
Concurrently, Meta is expediting the hiring of machine learning engineers and other essential engineering roles.
The hiring process is scheduled to take place between February 11 and March 13, aligning with Meta’s strategic priorities for 2025.
Unlike previous company-wide layoffs, Meta plans to keep its offices open on Monday and will not issue any additional updates regarding the decisions.
The company has declined to comment further on the internal memos detailing these plans
News
NEMSA, NAICOM Sign Agreement to Boost Electrical Safety, Insurance

The Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Insurance Commission to enhance electrical safety compliance in residential, commercial, and industrial buildings, as well as ensure adherence to insurance policy requirements for these structures.
A statement issued by Ama Umoren, NEMSA’s Head of Communications and Protocol Unit, on Sunday in Abuja, stated that the MoU establishes a collaborative framework between NEMSA and NAICOM to ensure that as a pre-condition, all electrical installations in residential, commercial, industrial premises, hazardous locations, industries and factories are duly certified by NEMSA before the Insurance Policy is processed by all Insurance Companies.
It stated further that the partnership between NEMSA and NAICOM aligned with the Federal Government’s commitment to strengthening the reliability and safety of Nigeria’s electricity sector.
The NEMSA’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Aliyu Tukur Tahir, while speaking during the signing ceremony, emphasised the importance of this collaboration in mitigating risks associated with electrical accidents and infrastructure failures.
“This partnership with NAICOM is a significant step towards ensuring that all electricity consumers, operators, and investors adhere to the highest safety and risk management standards.
”By integrating insurance compliance into electrical safety enforcement, we are safeguarding lives, investments, and the overall integrity of the power sector,” he stated.
Tukur, who is also the Chief Electrical Inspector of the Federation, said going forward, ‘’It will also be a requirement by NEMSA that all Facility Applicants of its statutory inspection, testing and certification, should ensure that their Facilities are insured with Insurance Companies, for safety and mitigation of risk.”
On his part, the Commissioner for Insurance and Chief Executive Officer of NAICOM, Mr Olusegun Omosehin, reiterated NAICOM’s commitment to ensuring that all power sector players embrace insurance as a critical risk management tool.
“Insurance plays a crucial role in cushioning the effects of electrical hazards and infrastructure-related incidents. Through this MoU, we will work closely with NEMSA to enforce compliance with relevant insurance policies, ensuring that the power sector operates with adequate risk mitigation mechanisms in place,” he said.
The collaboration will involve joint awareness campaigns, regulatory enforcement, and information-sharing initiatives to promote electrical safety and insurance adoption across the power sector.
This strategic partnership marks a milestone in the drive to enhance safety, reliability, and sustainability within Nigeria’s electricity industry and the country at large.
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