Deadline: June 15, 2025
Are you a woman entrepreneur transforming healthcare in East Africa? Do you lead a high-impact health innovation that’s improving lives in your community? Are you seeking a supportive environment to refine your solution, accelerate your organization’s impact, deepen your understanding of the startup ecosystem, and sharpen your entrepreneurial skills? Do you value access to networks that empower and inspire female founders to reach their full potential? Then apply for the African Women Innovating in Healthcare (AWIIH) 2025 Cohort.
Female founders face numerous challenges, from a lack of start-up support programs tailored to their natural strengths in collaboration and networking to limited backing from family and friends and biased assessment approaches when pitching for funding at all stages, from pre-seed to growth. Recognizing these barriers, Villgro Africa launched a dedicated program for female founders in 2024, designed with intentionality and insight to address their unique needs in the healthcare sector. In its first edition, the program supported 31 female-led ventures across 11 African countries, providing funding to 26 through grants and equity investments.
The 2025 call builds on this momentum and integrates key learnings from the 2024 cohort. It is part of their continued commitment to increasing the participation of female founders across the continent. By offering tailored support throughout the application process and proactively sharing relevant information, they aim to empower even more women to lead and scale healthcare innovations in Africa.
Benefits
Selected companies will go through a 9-month incubation and acceleration program during which they will be offered customized support based on their needs, including:
- Support networks – Access to a women-led community and peer learning opportunities.
- Mentorship and guidance – Access to inspiring and appropriate role models in your field.
- Technical expertise – Customized business and technology support by Villgro Africa and partners.
- Sponsorship – Curated access to potential external partners and other players in the start-up ecosystem.
- Funding – A fair opportunity to secure funding to grow your solution.
Eligibility
- Open to women-led innovative ventures tackling key challenges in healthcare in East Africa. Innovations supporting frontline health workers are especially encouraged.
- A female national of an African country or holds indefinite leave to remain in an African country.
- Domiciled in an East African country in which they must be a legal resident.
- Developing the proposed health innovation in their host East Africa country.
- Holds long-term control and management of the venture, and an active role in both strategic and day-to-day decision-making.
The venture must be:
- Incorporated in East Africa.
- A for-profit organization represented by a female founder/co-founder who is at least 18 years old and a citizen/national with a legal presence on the African continent.
- Owned/led/operated by an African woman (women). They define this as having a woman with long-term control and management of the business, an equity stake, and an active role in both strategic and day-to-day decision-making.
- Proven traction in at least one East Africa country and potential to expand across Africa.
- Scalable distribution channels.
Selection Criteria
The selection committee will meet to select the top startups in the initial screening and harmonize the cohort based on:
- Team: Strength of the current team
- Product: They are seeking solutions that are tackling key healthcare challenges in healthcare like strengthening and equipping the health workforce through employment creation, addressing Africa’s heavy burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases and improving access to quality medicines and medical equipment.
- Geographic relevance: A company registered and operating in East Africa
- Impact: High-impact health innovations that improve lives and drive meaningful improvements in healthcare equity, access, and quality.
Application
In addition to the information on the application form, applicants must submit the following:
- An updated company pitch deck.
- A 2-minute pitch video or product demo if available.
For more information, visit AWIIH.
