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The Pathology Network Provides Access to Diagnostics to Over 9000 Patients Across Kenya

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In Kenya alone, over 1 million critical pathology tests are inefficiently referred from 10,000 registered medical facilities to less than 30 labs and 80 pathologists each year. This translates to a lack of access to these critical services to patients from remote areas in the country.

The Pathology Network is changing this imbalance through a membership-based lab test referral platform where subscribing hospitals are connected to an efficient network of labs and pathologists at pre-negotiated rates.

Lab tests are funneled to member labs who process them and distribute the work to a network of member pathologists through a digital pathology framework. TPN uses AI integration to assist in cancer screening and diagnosis. Patients are immediately notified of their results, saving valuable time and money.

In two years, the medical technology company has been able to deliver quality pathology services to over 9,000 patients in about one third of the country. 

Dr. Joshua Kibera the Founder of The Pathology Network shares his experience working with Villgro Africa to increase access to affordable diagnostics across the region.

“Before we joined Villgro Africa, we were floundering. We knew we had potential to become a great company but didn’t have the tools or funding to test some of our basic assumptions. 

Dr. Joshua Kibera looking into a microscope.

One of our primary assumptions was that hospitals and pathology labs would be willing to pay for our software. To test this assumption, we needed funds to visit facilities in numerous towns and cities selling our product. 

Villgro Africa’s funding helped us learn that the market wants an efficient service and not another software. We pivoted to provide the actual service which we had initially intended to enable through our product. 

When we needed support in financial modeling, we turned again to Villgro Africa. They helped develop our first financial model which gave us wonderful clarity and confirmed the pivot we were already considering. To top it all, Villgro Africa paid for a sales training course, which has turned our ad-hoc sales into a repeatable sales process. 

It doesn’t end there – Villgro Africa’s investment was an endorsement of our company and of us as founders. Their introductions to other investors have led to follow-on funding which is catalyzing further growth of our service. When we joined Villgro we were more of a company with an idea, now we are a company with an actual business. Thanks Villgro Africa!”

Gibson Murikui (2nd Left) with The Pathology Network team members during a visit to Aroha Cancer Centre

Gibson Muriuki, Villgro Africa’s Investment Manager, has worked closely with Dr. Kibera and his team reiterated the need for tailor-made business incubation programs for startups in the region.

“In my reflection of the journey with The Pathology Network for the past year, I cannot help but think of the need for an evolving and robust Startup Ecosystem that tailor-makes their program to individual startups. This includes the process of identifying viable ideas and accelerating the growth path for social enterprises. 

Villgro Africa has walked the talk and lived up to its expectation of supporting African enterprises for Africans by collaborating with passionate and great entrepreneurs like Dr. Joshua, CEO at The Pathology Network, in not only achieving success but also changing the narrative for African founders.”

As The Pathology Network scales to create access to quality pathology services across the region, Villgro Africa will continue to offer its support and expertise.

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Wilfred

Wilfred holds an MBA from University of Milan and a BSc. in Computer Science. He brings in diverse experience having lived and worked in the Middle East, India and East Africa. He is well plugged into the Kenyan entrepreneurial ecosystem. Following a short stint at the African Venture Capital Association, he was immersed into the startups and incubation world while pitching his idea to a Jordanian-based incubator, OASIS500 in 2012. He went on to do a one-year Villgro fellowship in India (2013/14) after which he took up the challenge of scaling Villgro to Africa.

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.

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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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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.