{"id":9729,"date":"2022-10-19T14:04:25","date_gmt":"2022-10-19T12:04:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/south-bridge.com\/?p=9729"},"modified":"2023-05-22T10:59:02","modified_gmt":"2023-05-22T08:59:02","slug":"sante-digitale-et-programme-i3-quand-des-innovations-locales-partent-a-la-conquete-de-la-souverainete-sanitaire-africaine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/south-bridge.com\/en\/sante-digitale-et-programme-i3-quand-des-innovations-locales-partent-a-la-conquete-de-la-souverainete-sanitaire-africaine\/","title":{"rendered":"Digital Health and the i3 Program: When Local Innovations Set Out to Conquer African Health Sovereignty"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Digital healthcare is gaining momentum on the African continent, attracting more and more decision-makers and investors. This trend is illustrated by the impressive growth in HealthTech startups since 2020. If the covid-19 pandemic has acted as a catalyst, it's because the crisis has revealed that the future of healthcare systems in Africa is strongly correlated with the capacity for innovation of new technologies in this field.<\/strong><\/p>

Long before the Covid-19 crisis, other pandemics had revealed the shortcomings of Africa's healthcare infrastructures and supply chains. Some epidemics persist in several regions, and continue to strike the most vulnerable and isolated populations due to lack of access to care and treatment. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), nearly 130 public health alerts were reported on the continent between July 2021 and June 2022, with 86.2% outbreaks of infectious diseases, including polio, declared a public health emergency of international concern. Still according to WHO data, infant mortality rates remain considerably high in some regions, with more than 1.5 million deaths among children under 5 recorded in 2019. Not to mention chronic diseases and pathologies, hitherto under-diagnosed, which are gaining ground and represent a colossal challenge for health professionals, both public and private.<\/p>

To support the efforts of governments and compensate for the lack of access to healthcare services and medical product supply chains, a new generation of HealthTech players has gradually emerged in this sector with enormous development opportunities, in an Africa that is increasingly connected to the Internet and the world. And in the field of healthcare, this new generation intends to prove that Big Data, algorithms, artificial intelligence or even blockchain, can provide populations with new individualized, personalized and preventive medical solutions.<\/p>

Apr\u00e8s des d\u00e9cennies de d\u00e9pendance internationale pour l\u2019approvisionnement en m\u00e9dicaments et en produits de sant\u00e9, la pand\u00e9mie du Covid-19 a surtout soulign\u00e9 l\u2019urgence pour l\u2019Afrique de b\u00e2tir sa souverainet\u00e9 sanitaire. Cependant, les moyens financiers, les liens avec les d\u00e9cideurs et l\u2019accompagnement font d\u00e9faut. C\u2019est ce que r\u00e9v\u00e8le un rapport de Salient et SouthBridge A&I, pr\u00e9ambule du programme i3 (Investing in Innovation in Africa), qui a examin\u00e9 le potentiel de m\u00e9canismes d\u2019un financement mixte pour acc\u00e9l\u00e9rer la croissance et l\u2019impact des startups et des distributeurs de produits de sant\u00e9 dans 4 pays d\u2019Afrique subsaharienne (Nig\u00e9ria, Kenya, Ghana et Ouganda).<\/p>

An African program, developed by Africans for Africans<\/h3>

Seulement voil\u00e0 : encourager la prochaine g\u00e9n\u00e9ration d\u2019acteurs de la HealthTech africaine exige une approche diff\u00e9rente de ce qui a pu \u00eatre fait par le pass\u00e9. C\u2019est en cela que le programme i3 prend tout son sens. Financ\u00e9 par la Fondation Bill & Melinda Gates et parrain\u00e9, entre autres, par Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD), AmerisourceBergen, Chemonics et Microsoft, ce projet \u00e9labor\u00e9 en juin 2022 et pilot\u00e9 par les cabinets Southbridge A&I, Salient et SCIDaR, met en lumi\u00e8re les startups africaines les plus prometteuses avec des apports consid\u00e9rables sur la chaine d\u2019approvisionnement des produits de sant\u00e9 et des solutions m\u00e9dicales \u00e0 travers tout le continent.<\/p>

60 startups s\u00e9lectionn\u00e9es issues de 14 pays, 50 000 dollars de subvention syst\u00e9matique pour chacune d\u2019entre elles et la cr\u00e9ation d\u2019opportunit\u00e9s de partenariats avec les sponsors du programme. En apparence, pas de quoi de se tailler la part du lion sur le march\u00e9 de la sant\u00e9 compte tenu des \u00e9normes investissements dont n\u00e9cessite le secteur\u2026car l\u00e0 n\u2019est pas le but d\u2019Investing in Innovation. Il ne s\u2019agit pas exclusivement de lever des fonds ni d\u2019un programme d\u2019acc\u00e9l\u00e9ration classique de ces startups mais surtout de mettre en avant des solutions existantes ayant un impact concret sur les indicateurs d\u2019acc\u00e8s \u00e0 la population aux m\u00e9dicaments et aux dispositifs m\u00e9dicaux, de co\u00fbts, et de sant\u00e9 publique en g\u00e9n\u00e9ral, tout en mettant un coup de projecteurs sur les difficult\u00e9s que rencontrent ces entreprises afin d\u2019alimenter le plaidoyer international.<\/p>

Si le financement du programme est principalement international, l\u2019initiative reste r\u00e9solument ancr\u00e9e dans le continent africain. Le design du programme et les d\u00e9cisions de s\u00e9lection ont \u00e9t\u00e9 r\u00e9alis\u00e9s par des acteurs de l\u2019\u00e9cosyst\u00e8me tech en Afrique. Le Programme i3 a vis\u00e9 tout le continent et les coordonnateurs du programme (SouthBridge A&I, Salient Advisory et SCIDAR) ont s\u00e9lectionn\u00e9 quatre acc\u00e9l\u00e9rateurs de renom, un sur chaque r\u00e9gion, pour piloter la s\u00e9lection des b\u00e9n\u00e9ficiaires et les suivre sur la dur\u00e9e. De leur c\u00f4t\u00e9, les coordinateurs du programme assurent le lien entre les b\u00e9n\u00e9ficiaires et une coalition unique de bailleurs de fonds, aux c\u00f4t\u00e9s de leaders d\u2019industries et d\u2019institutions africaines et internationales engag\u00e9es dans les probl\u00e9matiques de d\u00e9veloppement du continent.<\/p>

Convinced that the development of HealthTech in Africa cannot be envisaged without the increased participation of certain players in the sector who are often left out of the financing networks, the i3 program has made gender equality a condition for its success. sine qua non<\/em> dans ses crit\u00e8res de s\u00e9lection des startups, avec pr\u00e8s de 47% des entreprises retenues dirig\u00e9es par des femmes (avec au moins une femme participant au capital et jouant un r\u00f4le actif dans la gestion). Autre crit\u00e8re non n\u00e9gligeable : au moins 30% des entreprises op\u00e8rent en Afrique du Nord et francophone.<\/p>

Of the 1,200 digital healthcare companies currently operating in Africa, regional and geographical disparities point to four distinct regional hubs that concentrate 95% of the sector's players: Egypt for North Africa, Kenya for East Africa, South Africa for the extreme tip of the continent, and Nigeria for the western part. Four predominantly English-speaking countries, with regulations that are more conducive to the emergence of innovation, who have taken advantage of market opportunities and networks of influence.<\/p>

Morocco, the fifth continental hub?<\/h3>

i3's starting point is the realization that the development of successful innovative solutions in an African environment can and must be developed in other countries on the continent in order to grow and realize its potential. Africa is brimming with skills and innovation champions who are committed to finding solutions to the economic, social and environmental issues facing their respective countries, and on a broader scale, the entire continent.<\/p>

In the Kingdom of Morocco, the program revealed three start-ups with different areas of focus, which stood out during the selection phase. Sobrus, DeepEcho and Medevice have focused respectively on cloud solutions, digital platforms and artificial intelligence to develop medical and supply devices that could make daily life easier for millions of Africans. Representing 10% of the companies selected by i3, they introduce Morocco to the very select circle of African countries mentioned above where digital healthcare is already firmly rooted in local ecosystems.<\/p>

But before placing their pawns on the continent, where their expertise and know-how can resolutely resonate and meet the specific needs of other African populations, these young startups have a decisive role to play in the development of the Moroccan HealthTech ecosystem, the contours of which began to take shape as early as 2014 with players like Dabadoc, a genuine Moroccan success story. More recently, DataPathology, a Moroccan MedTech startup specializing in digital pathology, has attracted several investors and raised funds (via the WITAMAX program) that have enabled it to become one of the HealthTech players to watch in Morocco and Africa.<\/p>

Or, est-ce assez pour nourrir les espoirs de voir \u00e9merger un cinqui\u00e8me hub marocain ? Une question qu\u2019il est l\u00e9gitime de se poser lorsque l\u2019on constate les \u00e9carts dans les acc\u00e8s aux march\u00e9s entre les startups marocaines et celles d\u2019autres pays africains. Sur les 27 autres startups s\u00e9lectionn\u00e9es par le programme, combien pourraient r\u00e9ellement \u00eatre op\u00e9rationnelles au Maroc ? Les talents marocains ont d\u2019ailleurs bien plus de chances d\u2019acqu\u00e9rir des march\u00e9s dans d\u2019autres pays africains que dans leur propre pays.<\/p>

Dans la premi\u00e8re cohorte s\u00e9lectionn\u00e9e par i3, l\u2019on trouve des entreprises qui utilisent des drones dans leur mod\u00e8le de distribution, certaines qui pr\u00e9sentent des solutions de financement en plus de leur solution d\u2019approvisionnement, d\u2019autres qui comparent des prix et proposent des promotions sur les m\u00e9dicaments, des pharmacies virtuelles qui livrent directement les produits \u00e0 la population ou encore des startups de t\u00e9l\u00e9m\u00e9decine et de t\u00e9l\u00e9diagnostic. Au Maroc, toutes ces entreprises auraient \u00e9t\u00e9 soit qualifi\u00e9es d\u2019ill\u00e9gales, soit quasi impossible \u00e0 op\u00e9rer ou non pertinentes du fait de la politique pharmaceutique actuellement en vigueur.<\/p>

As a result, the supply chain and the healthcare system in general in Morocco are missing out on major optimization opportunities that could have an impact on the proximity of the healthcare system to the population, on the final cost for the State and patients, and on access to innovation. This, against a backdrop of the implementation of Universal and Compulsory Health Insurance, which should require the system to carry out all pockets of optimization to prevent expenditure from spiraling out of control.<\/p>

Generally speaking, there are some important prerequisites that need to be put in place if Morocco is to develop as a breeding ground for health tech innovation: greater flexibility and confidence in Moroccan start-ups in terms of public procurement (along the lines of what was achieved during the COVID period), greater liberalization of the pharmaceutical sector, starting with OTC drugs at liberalized prices, and easier financing and payment solutions for health tech players. supply chain<\/em> m\u00e9dicales. Il s\u2019agit de profiter de la Refonte actuelle du syst\u00e8me de sant\u00e9 pour lever les freins \u00e0 toutes ces innovations, que ce soit dans la r\u00e9forme du syst\u00e8me de soins publics ou dans la nouvelle politique pharmaceutique nationale.<\/p>

This could enable an ecosystem that raised less than $1 million in 2021, to play in the same league as Nigerian, Kenyan, South African and even Egyptian players, who took nearly 95% of the $153 million raised in the same year.<\/p>