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Benedict

01Mar

What COVID-19 tells us about the current biomedical innovation and manufacturing capacity in Kenya

March 1, 2021 Benedict News 0

COVID19  was a good demonstration of why the work we are doing is important. For Kenya like most of Africa we typically inject over 90% of all the medical devices that we use are diagnostics, this puts us at a major risk. 

When we realised this was a global challenge, our normal suppliers whether for PPE’s or diagnostics tests and in this case the vaccines, majorly produced for their own population first, what has been known as vaccine nationalism. In a situation like this with no capacity, you are at the mercy of those who have the ability to produce. 

Being able to build capacity for Africa so that Africa is not always behind is important. The last global pandemic we had was HIV, it took us 10 years from when the ARVs had been launched for ARVs to be readily available in africa. Fortunately we now have COVAX which is trying to address that. 

The best thing we can do now is what South Africa is doing so that companies can licence countries with capacity to manufacture vaccines so that they can start producing for populations within the region. Kenya currently does not have that capacity. We can only receive 1M one of the reasons we are not doing sufficient testing and contact tracing is because of the limited capacity.

COVID has been a good eye-opener to the fact that local manufacturing and innovation is important and we need to continue building on that capacity so that the lessons from hiv and the innovation gap can be addressed. 

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26Feb

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS ASME ISHOW

February 26, 2021 Benedict News 1

The ASME Innovation Showcase (ISHOW), a hardware-led social innovation accelerator, seeks applicants to join its 2021 cohort.
ISHOW is open to individuals and organizations taking physical products to market that will have a positive social and environmental impact.

Applicants should have an existing prototype and be interested in receiving financing, technical support and access to industry networks to assist in taking their product to market.

Apply now through March 9, 2021 to win a share of $200K in grants, consultations, business development assets, and a design and engineering review led by industry experts.

Visit www.asmeishow.org to begin your application and follow @ASMEishow on Twitter.

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24Feb

Innovators Forum

February 24, 2021 Benedict News 0

COVID-19 has presented an opportunity for the whole world to accelerate innovation, ingenuity and entrepreneurship in life-saving health technologies. In Kenya, we have seen entrepreneurs and innovators develop homegrown solutions, including locally assembled ventilators, contact tracing apps and automated testing kits.

However, despite the policies, strategic frameworks and investments for innovation, the path to scale for Kenyan innovators is not always clear. That’s why Villgro and Bobab have teamed up to deliver the Innovators Forum; a virtual event series exploring the challenges and opportunities for biomedical and diagnostic innovation and manufacturing in Kenya.

Over the course of five online events, we will be bringing together diverse groups of experts from business, academia and policy. Together, and inline with Kenya Vision 2030, we will explore where and how innovation and knowledge-based development processes can support national development strategies as a source of sustainable growth and jobs.

In addition to public webinars, we will also be delivering three interactive roundtables. Each will focus on a different area, convening high-level stakeholders and enabling deep-dive exploration of challenges and opportunities. These will range from developing complex manufacturing processes to the role of social impact bonds and other innovative funding mechanisms.

We will be capturing insights and ideas generated throughout these sessions and compiling them in our Guide To Accelerating Biomedical and Diagnostic Innovation and Manufacturing. This will provide a practical toolkit that can be picked up and used by stakeholders from Kenya and across Africa, designed to educate and assist with the development and manufacturing of homegrown health technologies. 

The first event of the series will take place on 30th March 2021 under the theme, Building Resilience Through Investment in Biomedical and Diagnostics Innovation and Manufacturing in Kenya. 

COVID-19 is taking its toll on Africa, reemphasising persistent structural weaknesses that overexpose countries like Kenya to the social, health and economic impacts of the pandemic. These include a high dependency on imports in areas such as drugs, machinery and equipment,weak local production systems, limited digital connectivity and the prevalence of informal micro businesses.

However, as well as highlighting reasons for concern, Kenya’s response to COVID-19 also has the potential to accelerate innovation, improve the response of healthcare systems and ignite a growth recovery, unlocking industrialisation, modernisation and continental integration. 

In this first event of the Innovators Forum, we will be convening a diverse group of experts to share their experiences and insights. Together, we will explore the channels through which trade and industrial policies can help launch a renewed, job-rich and sustainable development agenda in Kenya; one that leverages immense untapped national and regional potential, enables homegrown innovation to thrive and opens up new opportunities for local business to create new and better jobs.

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16Feb

Call for Innovative Medtech Device Startups

February 16, 2021 Benedict News 3

Villgro Africa, an impact investor and early stage business incubator that supports startups innovating for Low and Middle Income Communities, is calling on Innovative Medtech Device Startups based in Africa to apply for funding of $20,000 and incubation.

Eligibility: The innovation must be either

  1. Tech-enabled
  2. IoMT
  3. Level I & II Medical Device/Diagnostic

Successful applicants will also receive business development expertise and access to further investment opportunities. 

We have a preference for scalable and sustainable models led by a multidisciplinary team with a minimum viable product.

To apply visit  https://villgroafrica.org/apply/ and fill in the application form.

We welcome referrals from organizations that have worked with or know a startup that is a good fit.

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30Jan

Disrupt Africa Report

January 30, 2021 Benedict News 3

Villgro Africa partnered with Disrupt Africa, Catalyst Fund, Quona Capital, Otundi Capital, Lateral Capital, 4Di Capital and RTB House to make the African Tech Startups Funding Report 2020 available to all for free.

The report found that startups from more African countries than ever before secured funding in a record-breaking 2020 that saw a combined US$701 million raised across the continent.

A total of 307 startups from South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Egypt raised funding in 2020, accounting for 77.3% of the 397 funded ventures. Together, they raised a combined US$625,659,000, accounting for 89.2% of the Pan-African tally.

For the second year running, Kenyan startups raised a record amount of funding in 2020, securing a combined total of US$191,381,000. Accounting for 27.3% of the continent’s total investment. This is the largest amount of funding ever achieved by a single country. It was, however, raised by relatively few ventures – with 59 Kenyan startups responsible for the investment total. Find the full report here.

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28Jan

Villgro Africa featured in StartupScene Nairobi

January 28, 2021 Benedict News 3

Villgro Africa is excited to have been featured in the latest edition of Startup Guide, a publishing and media company that produces guidebooks and online content to help entrepreneurs navigate and connect with different startup scenes across the world.

Startup Guide Nairobi offers comprehensive profiles of entrepreneurs, investors, incubators, co-working spaces and key ecosystem players. The book gives the reader a front seat to the vibrant startup ecosystem that is the silicon savanna of Africa.

Entrepreneurs looking to set up shop in the city have at their disposal all the information they need from regulations and key contacts in the startup scene. Founders also have their voice and their segment offers valuable insights and advice for entrepreneurs looking to understand how to hack the Kenyan market.

Get access to the book here

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18Jan

Villgro Africa Portfolio companies win TechEmerge Health East Africa Challenge

January 18, 2021 Benedict News 3

Female led portfolio companies Neopenda and Rescue by Flare emerged as finalists of the TechEmerge Health East Africa Challenge.

They are among 17 innovative health tech startups from 11 countries successfully matched with 11 leading healthcare providers across Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda to jointly implement 20 pilot projects and build long-term partnerships.

Selected innovators receive funding and guidance from the TechEmerge team to pilot their tech solutions in the East African market, with the ultimate goal of wider commercial deployment of the technologies.

IFC will provide support during the market-entry and tech transfer process for both innovators and healthcare providers – mitigating financial and operational risks associated with market entry for innovators and reducing adoption risks for local healthcare providers.

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13Jan

PODCAST: NAVIGATING THE FDA/CE MARK PROCESS

January 13, 2021 Benedict News, Podcast 3

“By no means should you compromise safety qualities because you are developing products for a different market…investing the time and money into developing a robust process early on is something that is required for all medical device companies.” ~ Sona Shah

 

This is the first episode of a three-part series on Medical Device Regulation: Navigating the FDA/CE mark regulatory process. 

In this episode, we host Sona Shah, founder and CEO of Neopenda. Neopenda is a medical device company focused on designing and implementing use-base technologies for emerging markets. Their remote vital signs monitor reduces the burden of clinicians and helps them monitor more patients efficiently while reducing the risks of infection.

Sona Shah gives us insights into how they navigated the regulatory process for their medical devices in the USA and East Africa, the challenges they faced, and how MedTech devices can go about getting regulatory approvals for their products. 

Should companies prioritize regulatory approvals and at what stage?

– Quality management is essential – setting up a robust quality management system early on will give you an understanding of how to approach document controls and revision history. It is also important to Invest in this early on and understand the standards you will have to adhere to from a regulatory perspective.

– Getting feedback from your users during your iterations and understanding how to document that is key during the early stage. You may want to go through the regulatory approvals once you have a more defined product.

How can companies minimize expenses while maximizing regulatory outcomes?

– Consultants – Regulatory consultants are essential because they understand the nuances of the documentation of the regulatory process. It is important to establish the QMS with them and once you have that set up, you follow the laid down process. As you are starting to finalize your product, I would recommend bringing on a consultant, as it will save you the time and money you may have to spend redoing your product.

– Even if you are applying for local regulation, I would recommend you understand the FDA/CE Mark process well because it can be a lot of work to go from local registration to stringent authorities like FDA/CE Mark. Design for submission to FDA/CE Mark during your process, as this is typically sufficient for local registration.

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07Jan

IIDEA & IRTF Call for Idea Submission

January 7, 2021 Benedict News 0

The Incubator for Integration and Development in East Africa (IIDEA) and the Intra-Regional Trade Facility (IRTF) are inviting private sector and civil society organizations in East African Community Partner States to submit their innovative ideas. IIDEA calls for ideas in the areas of digitalization/ICT,
health and stakeholder’s engagement on Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Project ideas in Agri-business, tourism and initiatives that promote intra EAC trade are invited for submission under IRTF for support. All project ideas submitted must involve at least two EAC Partner States.
IIDEA incubates small-scale regional integration projects which are proposed and implemented by civil society, private sector and other interest groups in East Africa. Its objective is to ensure that non-state actors in the EAC Partner States have implemented measures for people’s engagement in regional economic integration. For details visit www.eaciidea.net.

IRTF provides technical and financial support to initiatives from private sector players that promote intra-regional trade and advocacy to overcome challenges in intra-regional trade. IRTF supports private sector initiatives in the EAC to promote intra-regional trade and value addition. It also supports
private sector advocacy towards regional and national authorities in the EAC Partner States to overcome challenges in intra-regional trade.
To further increase their regional impact, IIDEA and IRTF are seeking to support additional innovative ideas and projects that are fostering regional integration, economic development and amplifying EAC intra-regional trade. Private Sector and civil society organizations are therefore, invited to submit their project ideas, to compete in a regional hackathon.

The Hackathon will support the innovators to improve their project concept, and winners will be awarded by both financial and business development support from IIDEA and IRTF. Eligibility Private sector and civil society organizations that meet the following criteria are welcome to submit
their ideas for consideration;

1. IIDEA will admit projects benefiting at least two EAC Partner States in the following sectors: digitalization of services and products, promotion of cross border health services/products and facilitation of stakeholders’ engagement in the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
2. IRTF will admit project proposals benefiting at least two EAC Partner States in the following priority areas; agribusiness, tourism and initiatives that promote intra-EAC trade.
3. Project ideas led by youths and women or focusing on the needs and participation of women and youth in the EAC integration process will be given due preference.
4. Project proposals from Burundi, Rwanda and South Sudan will be prioritised. Project ideas from Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania involving partners and beneficiaries from the later will be an added advantage.                                                                                                                                               5. Projects ideas proposed must demonstrate expected results and impacts on regional integration and or intra-regional trade.
6. Private sector or civil society organizations must be duly registered and based in the EAC Partner States.
7. Intending private sector or civil society organizations must have a functional organizational structure and demonstrated capacity for implementation of the proposed project.
8. Projects ideas with implementation period ranging between six to nine months will be considered.
9. Project budget for the innovative ideas should range between 15,000-20,000 USD.

Application Procedure
Interested organizations are requested to submit the following documents;
1. Project Pitch Deck
2. 2-minute video, explaining the project idea and why it should be considered under IIDEA or IRTF support. The video must be transferred via https://filetransfer.giz.de to eac-germancooperation@giz.de                                                                                                                                               3. Full names and brief profile of all team members
4. Certificate of registration or incorporation.

IIDEA and IRTF Hackathon Timeline
1. Call for idea submission will be opened across EAC Partner States for one-month. The call for idea submission will run from the 15th December 2020 to the 15th of January 2021.
2. Pre-Selection of project ideas will be conducted by IIDEA and IRTF team in collaboration with the EAC Secretariat technical team by 29th of January 2021.
3. The 12 selected project ideas will participate in a regional Hackathon, where they will be mentored by experts to improve their project concept. The Hackathon is scheduled for the 15th of February 2021.
4. Selected projects will be approved by designated juries and announced as the winners of the hackathon. These winners will be provided with financial and business development support by IIDEA or IRTF respectively after undergoing due diligence. The winners are foreseen to be
announced by 15th of March 2021.

Call for Idea submission will close on the 16th of January 2021.

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18Dec

Villgro Africa awards $20, 000 to Damu Sasa to Enhance their COVID-19 Capabilities

December 18, 2020 Benedict News 10

Villgro Africa has awarded $20,000 to Damu Sasa System Limited (DSL), which runs an innovative end-to-end blood services information management platform (Damu-Sasa), to enable them to enhance their contributions to mitigating the spread of COVID-19. 

Damu-Sasa works across the entire blood ecosystem by helping hospitals source blood from donors and from each other while also supporting screening, preparation of blood products and inventory and transfusions management.  The Damu-Sasa system also helps mobilize donors, tracks their donations while giving them digital access to their donation history. The DSL team works with hospitals and other multi-sectoral partners to increase voluntary donations from across the population, with the goal of delivering sufficient supply of safe blood while improving tracking and reporting of utilization countrywide. 

During 2020, Damu-Sasa has grown in presence from one hospital in one city to 132 hospitals across the country. The system has facilitated over 9,000 transfusions and has over 72,000 registered donors on their platform. The DSL team looks to significantly grow this number through increasing Damu-Sasa presence in healthcare facilities as well as through their newly launched Damu Sasa android app, currently available on Google Playstore. 

During COVID-19 the DSL team has provided online booking for blood donation appointments, personalized booking links for each hospital, evidence based educational articles, blood screening tracking capacity for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, and mobile text reminders of safe practices to blood donors.

“Villgro Africa is thrilled to support the work of the DSL team, they are a young and vibrant company who are committed to solving this real challenge.  Working alongside Innovative Canadians for Change (ICChange), we look forward to being a part of their efforts in managing safe and efficient blood donations in Kenya, and doing so using a sustainable model.”  says Rob Beyer, Cofounder & Executive Chair of Villgro Africa

In addition to the grant, Villgro Africa will offer technical assistance to enable the team to enhance their capacity with respect to COVID-19 blood management related capabilities while also supporting ongoing fundraising efforts. 

According to Dr. Matunda Nyanchama, Chairman of DSL, “At Damu-Sasa, we are really excited with this partnership because it will help us address key concerns occasioned by the pandemic, improve potential blood donor numbers and hence help alleviate, to the degree possible, the perennial blood shortages.”

The Damu Sasa system enhances efficiency and effectiveness of the blood ecosystem, helps minimize waste and enhances blood availability, thereby leading to lives saved and improved health outcomes.

 

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Dr. Beatrice Murage

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Dr. Beatrice Murage is an experienced, results-oriented leader in systems strengthening, healthcare management, entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship, digital innovation and exploration/ventures. She has successfully built teams and led strategy, policy formulation, and project implementation in emerging and established markets.

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Ordia Akelo holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics Media and Communication from Moi University. She was awarded a Climate Tracker Fellowship as a Climate journalist in 2016 & 2017. She has worked as a writer, editor and managed websites & social media sites for Standard Media Group and the African Network for Internationalization of Education.

Immanuel Momanyi_VK Pic

Immanuel is a Senior Portfolio Associate on Villgro Kenya’s team. Prior to Villgro Kenya, Immanuel gained multi-sectoral experience working firsthand with businesses throughout Sub-Saharan Africa to develop new business strategies, raise capital, and pioneer innovative products and services. He is an alumni of Zamara Actuaries, Administrators and Consultants and holds a Bachelors in Actuarial Science from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. Immanuel likes everything related to nature, cars, and believes gaming is cool.

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Rescue by Flare, an emergency response platform in Kenya is using their robust dispatch system to manage all intake and triage at Kenya’s main COVID-19 isolation, testing, and treatment facilities.

As part of the Wheels For Life consortium, they have also partnered with the Ministry of Health Kenya, AMREF, Bolt, Pharmaccess Foundation, Kenya Healthcare Federation, and Telesky to get expectant mothers to the hospital during curfew hours.

Through their network of first responders, the team has fielded 3,714  calls, dispatched 198 taxis, and 60 ambulances. Their fast response rates have helped save the lives of an average of 8 mothers every night, since the initiative began.

download (2)

Telemedicine platform enables patients to get treatment from any part of the country without having to visit a hospital physically and exposing themselves to COVID-19.

xsense-logo-3jk-scaled

Artificial Intelligence based solutions and data analytics for diagnosis of Covid-19 from Xray images. Have developed a system that detects COVID-19 using AI in real time.
Images can be uploaded to the system via a website portal and diagnosis is returned in real time

VentilateAfrica

Ventilate Africa have developed a ventilator locally for the treatment of COVID 19. This is in line with the impending global shortage of ventilators due to the high number of cases in countries with low healthcare infrastructure.

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A functional prototype of a locally manufactured ventilator developed using a wind screen motor. Currently working closely with the Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute to develop the second prototype that meets global standards.

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Simbona Africa, an Ethiopian healthcare research and development company developed a fully automated UVC room sterilizer for use in hospitals and public spaces.

The  UVC apparatus is fitted with UVC lamps (8 watts) that emit high-intensity ultraviolet light that is able to kill microorganisms and pathogens found on surfaces in the room including COVID-19. It has the ability to disinfect up to 40 square meters of a room at any given time.

They have manufactured 14 units and are in the process of delivering 30 orders requested from the Ministry of Health Ethiopia. Villgro Kenya will help scale their production and unlock regional partnerships so that their devices can serve other countries within the region.

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Medixus is a case management platform for medical practitioners which also has a tele-medicine interface for patients. In response to COVID-19 they have incorporated daily fact based updates on COVID-19 for clinicians.

Using the platform, clinicians can share case studies of patients securely, professionally discuss, debate, ask questions and share their insights.

The platform has helped improve case management and clinical practice.

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Lishe Living is offering chronic disease management via an online platform to reduce risk of COVID-19 mortality and morbidity from pre-existing conditions. With social distancing requirements in place reduced hospital visits have been recorded leading to a burden on patients with non-communicable diseases to manage their conditions. With Lishe Living they are able to reduce the risk of infection as they can manage their conditions from the comfort of their homes. Villgro Kenya’s support will help net the right partnerships with key stakeholders while giving them appropriate mentorship from our pool of mentors well versed in the sector.

neopanda

Neopenda, a remote vital signs monitor for low resource settings is modifying the Neoguard device so that it can measure vital signs in adults and children, with potential to help with the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. With adequate technical support, the device will help medics respond faster to medical emergencies related to COVID-19  It can also help in identifying suspected cases who are being monitored.

The remote vital signs monitor which helps reduce the burden of a high patient to doctor ratio in rural Uganda will also help lower their risk of contracting the virus as it reduces the frequency of physical monitoring.

polyu-faceshield-1-copy

Kijenzi uses 3D technology to manufacture spare parts of broken down medical equipment locally and at a fraction of the cost of buying new equipment. Kijenzi’s manufacturing hub in Kisumu is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic by producing PPE’s like touchless door handles and face shields for hospital staff and other essential workers. With the technical support from Villgro Kenya, the team has delivered over 2100 face shields to 24 medical facilities.

New Team Images_Dr Kevin

Ms. Snider Mugese is a BSc. Financial Engineering graduate from Jomo Kenyatta university of Agriculture and technology (JKUAT). She is also a certified Public accountant (CPA K) currently pursuing a certification in Finance and Investment analysis. She previously worked as an accountant at NewQuest Consulting Limited, an accounting firm where she handled various companies in Bookkeeping and Tax and held a team supervisory role.

John Masanda

John Masanda is an astute entrepreneur and business executive with experience and expertise to lead diverse teams with multiple skills and multicultural background.

John has successful participated in various enterprises start-up and growth, diversifications, new products launch, new markets entry, business consolidation, mergers and acquisitions, funding and investment decisions.

John is Founder & CEO of Malfini Capital Ltd (MCL) which is investment and stockholder in Malfini Gas Ltd a distributor of BOC GASES; a leading global brand of gases and process engineering services, Malfini Energy Ltd a distributor of petroleum products Fuels & CALTEX LUBRICANTS; a leading global brand and Malfini Logistics Ltd a 3PL logistics service provider, commodity trading and FMCG distributor. MCL is an investor in Malfini Gas DRC Sarl a joint venture company participating in development of the Lake Kivu Methane Gas Project to produce methane gas for both domestic use, industrial use and power generation. John does provides advisory services to; FasterCapital LLC a virtual incubator co-founding and cofounding start-ups with innovative app-based or online based solutions, Villgro Kenya an incubator of innovative ideas on healthcare and biosciences and Capital One Group a corporate communications agency with East Africa operations and Ugavilla Development Co. Ltd a developer of affordable housing.

John has been CEO of Kenlloyd Logistics Ltd; which grew to be regional network partner and franchisee of DB Schenker of Germany; a leading global logistics service provider, negotiated and performed Fuel Supply Agreement with Jacobsen Elektro AS of Norway supporting seamlessly their 50Mw power plant in Uganda for 7 years, negotiated and signed a PPP concession with Government Of Uganda through City Authority and a subsidiary; Pioneer Easy Bus Ltd to operate public transport passenger services for 5 years. John has been instrumental in negotiating and introducing into East Africa innovative construction technologies and alternative building technologies; Probase Road System (‘’PRS’’) for roads and Lightweight Concrete Methodology (‘’LCM’’) for housing.

Daniel Ohonde-01

Daniel Ohonde is a dynamic, strategic and visionary leader with more than 25 years of exceptional leadership experience in CEO / COO and investment stewardship roles managing high performance teams. He has a combination of international development experience and broad commercial experience gained from diverse markets. His experience in the provision of patient capital to small and growing businesses (SGBs) is extensive across Africa and, as a member of the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) Global Executive Committee, he also brings on board a deep understanding of the SGB landscape in other developing and emerging markets globally. He is former CEO at the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF). His passion is in supporting and catalyzing early stage (and scaling) innovative enterprises and business models that can sustainably deliver social change.
He has a rich mix of human resources, operations, strategy, finance, investment, governance, resource mobilization and portfolio management experience having previously worked (across various locations internationally) with African Development Bank, Real People Financial Services, African Management Services Company (AMSCO), USAID, Plus Consultants, ExxonMobil, Coca-Cola Africa, and WestConsult.
Daniel has a BSc in Mechanical Engineering from University of Nairobi, MBA in Strategic Management from USIU-A and an MSc in Finance from the University of London. He is an avid tennis and cricket supporter, is married and blessed with two sons

Dr. Abdi Mohamed-01

Dr. Abdi Mohamed is an award winning serial entrepreneur who was voted as one of the Top 40 under 40 men in Kenya. He is the co-founder and CEO of Ladnan Hospital which has been acquired by a PE Fund. Dr. Abdi has been elected into leadership positions by his medical professional colleagues. Dr. Abdi has strong entrepreneurial acumen with a leaning towards social enterprises.

Wesley 2019

Wesley Ronoh is a seasoned Pharmaceutical Sector Development Expert having worked and consulted for leading International Development Agencies within East Africa and beyond. He has a deep understanding of the health technologies landscape in the developing world having been involved in developing regional and national policies and other strategic interventions aimed at improving access. He has core competencies in Life Science Product Development including technology transfer management, commercialization, manufacture and delivery to market. Wesley is a Registered Pharmacist with postgraduate degrees in Medicinal Chemistry and MBA.

Paul Basil

Mr. Basil is Founder and CEO of Villgro Innovations Foundation. Over the last decade, Mr. Basil has incubated over 130 innovative enterprises, creating over 4000 jobs, touching around 5 million lives in villages across India.

Mr. Basil also co-founded Menterra Venture Advisors, a seed stage, impact fund that makes venture investments in for-profit, impactful enterprises.

Apart from the core of his mission, which is incubating early stage, innovative businesses, Paul also has contributed to building the social enterprise eco-system in India. Unconvention, India’s leading conference on innovation and social entrepreneurship is organized in 15 cities across India, a Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship at IIT-Madras that focuses on research and education, the ANDE India Chapter (Aspen Network for Development Entrepreneurs) a network of intermediaries that support small and growing businesses etc., are some of his achievements in building the eco-system in India.

Mr. Basil was awarded the Ashoka Fellowship in 2002 for his outstanding social entrepreneurship in setting up Villgro. He has also been conferred the Samaj Seva Bhushan Award and the Star Entrepreneur Award

Paul

Paul Belknap is COO, Villgro Kenya. Paul has diverse experience in both product development and social business incubation. He spent three and a half years building the Villgro India health portfolio by sourcing pipeline, leading diligence and portfolio management for multiple companies.

Rob

Rob brings a unique combination of seasoned experience in business and social entrepreneurship, education and technology. Rob is a visionary leader who has lived in Kenya for the past 11 years and is fully aware of the unique challenges that Kenyans face seeking sustainable livelihoods within the East African context.

Robert

Robert serves as the CEO, Villgro Kenya where he is spearheading the replication of the Villgro incubation model of social entrepreneurship and impact investment in the healthcare and life sciences industry. He has over 10 years of experience in global health R&D as a biomedical scientist at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) where he discovered his passion for impacting peoples’ lives through science and innovation.

Wilfred

Wilfred brings in diverse experience having lived and worked in Middle East, Asia and Africa and travelled to 8 countries. His first immersion into startup and incubation world came while pitching his idea to a Jordanian based incubator, OASIS500. He went on to do a one year Villgro fellowship in India after which he took up the challenge of scaling Villgro to Africa.

Dr Kevin

Dr. Kevin Muite is an Investment Manager with Villgro Kenya. Kevin holds a PhD in Immunology from the University of Chicago and a former consultant for large pharmaceutical clients. He began his scientific career in Durban South Africa researching HIV at the Doris Duke Medical Center at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal during his undergraduate years. He spent a year conducting research at Virginia Tech as an NIH post baccalaureate fellow researching mucosal immunology. ​

Gibson

Gibson holds a Bachelor’s degree in Arts (Economics) from the University of Nairobi. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA K) . He previously worked as a freelancing Accounts and Tax Consultant for SMEs and a junior financial analyst at Fledge-Africa, a financial consulting company providing investment readiness and fund raising support for Villgro Kenya’s portfolio, where he discovered his passion for due diligence and financial modeling

Moses

Moses holds an MSc. in Global Health from the University of Manchester and a Bachelor of Business Administration specializing in entrepreneurship from the Kenya Methodist University. He has diverse experience in managing health research and intervention programs covering areas such as substance abuse, mental health, HIV/AIDS, health promotion and behavior change programs. He has held senior roles in several non-profits including the Private Sector Development Trust, The Institute of Quantity Surveyors of Kenya and SCAD.