The top health innovation to showcase at the Nairobi Innovation Week will receive Sh1 million ($10,000) in funding from Villgro Kenya, a business incubator.
According to a press statement released on Tuesday, the company or individual behind the best innovation will also be taken through a mentorship programme and will gain access to potential investors.
Villgro Kenya incubates social enterprises which tackle challenges in Africa’s health sector.
The organisation provides seed funding and technical assistance to early-stage entrepreneurs.
The Kenyan unit of Villgro is part of a larger global foundation, Villgro Innovations, which has supported 100 inventors across the world.
This year’s edition of Nairobi Innovation Week, slated for early March, is the fourth such event to be hosted by the University of Nairobi.
Innovators from across the country are expected to exhibit their products and pitch ideas to potential investors. They will also participate in workshops meant to strengthen their business skills.
Last year, at least 2,500 delegates and 100 exhibitors attended the Nairobi Innovation Week, a significant growth in comparison to the about 700 delegates and 50 exhibitors who were part of the inaugural event in 2015.
The nexus of health and technology in Kenya has drawn innovators and investors over the last few years. Most recently, Flare, a startup, launched an online ambulance service in Nairobi following the injection of Sh55 million into the business by investors.
Telecom firm Safaricom #ticker:SCOM has sought to disrupt the health insurance market through its M-Tiba product. Toyota Tsusho company in 2016 invested Sh3.2 billion in Seven Seas technologies, money that was partly meant to drive the company’s inroads into the health sector.
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