Seven African startups chosen by i3 to revolutionize pharmacy care, funded by the Gates Foundation and others
The Investing in Innovation Africa (i3) program, a leading initiative focused on accelerating healthtech solutions across the continent, has selected seven African startups for its third cohort. These startups will receive $225,000 in catalytic grant funding each to support their innovative approaches to improving healthcare access and outcomes in Africa.
The i3 program, backed by the Gates Foundation, MSD, Sanofi, and others, focuses on digitally enabled and African-led healthtech solutions. It emphasizes innovations that address critical gaps in healthcare access, gender and geographic equity, policy and regulatory frameworks, and market penetration across the continent.
The healthtech innovations supported in the third cohort are likely to include:
- Digitally-enabled healthcare solutions designed to increase access and improve health outcomes in underserved African communities.
- Innovations that integrate with, or improve, government policy and regulatory systems to facilitate digital health adoption.
- Approaches that advance equity, notably by supporting women-led ventures and geographically diverse innovations.
- Technologies and business models aiming to strengthen local health markets by connecting innovators with insurers, payors, distributors, and governments.
While the exact innovations of each startup have not been publicly detailed, the program targets impactful, scalable healthtech innovations that can navigate and influence Africa’s healthcare ecosystem sustainably.
The startups in the third cohort are: Chefaa, Dawa Mkononi, Meditect, mPharma, myDawa, RxAll, and Sproxil. These companies operate across 19 countries and are building tech-driven tools to make medicine access more efficient, affordable, and widespread. The goal is to make pharmacy care smarter, faster, and more accessible.
In addition to the grant funding, the startups will participate in i3's Access to Markets event in December 2025 and receive tailored support to grow their pharmacy-focused innovations. The i3 program aims to forge 150 strategic partnerships and influence deals worth $30M.
Dr. Priya Agrawal from MSD and Boniface Njenga from the Gates Foundation have expressed commitments to partnering with i3 to expand equitable healthcare access. Dr. Ashifi Gogo from Sproxil has expressed encouragement about the support from leading global life sciences and logistics companies as they scale their impact.
Over the past two years, the i3 program has funded a total of 60 startups and has facilitated 122 contracts and pilots. It has also helped create nearly 1,000 jobs, with half of them going to women. The program's commitment to supporting innovative solutions in Africa continues to drive progress in the healthtech sector.
The i3 program, focusing on digitally enabled and African-led healthtech solutions, supports startups addressing critical gaps in healthcare access, aiming to develop science-based innovations that promote health-and-wellness in African communities. The third cohort, consisting of Chefaa, Dawa Mkononi, Meditect, mPharma, myDawa, RxAll, and Sproxil, are developing tech-driven tools to enhance medicine access, affordability, and distribution, ultimately promoting smarter, faster, and more efficient pharmacy care in Africa.
