Pan-African Initiative i3 Will Give 7 African Startups $225k To Improve Healthcare Services Across the Continent

Pan-African initiative Investing in Innovation Africa (i3) has announced the launch of its third cohort, which will provide seven founders with $225,000 each in grant funding to transform pharmacy services across the continent.

The initiative is sponsored by the Gates Foundation, MSD, Cencora (formerly AmerisourceBergen), Endless Foundation, HELP Logistics (a subsidiary of the Kühne Foundation), Sanofi’s Global Health Unit, and Chemonics. It is a three-year program set to help founders improve patient access to healthcare across Africa, according to a press release shared by POCIT.

Which seven startups have been selected?

The seven selected startups are Chefaa, Dawa Mkononi, Meditect, mPharma, myDawa, RxAll, and Sproxil. Each company emphasizes that the power of locally grounded, scalable solutions can enhance patient outcomes, create jobs, and foster more efficient, data-driven healthcare delivery at scale.

Each innovator will receive up to $225,000, and i3 aims to facilitate approximately 150 strategic partnerships and influence deals valued at roughly $30 million between innovators and major healthcare purchasers.

Additionally, the cohort will participate in i3’s flagship Access to Markets event in December 2025, which is designed to spark high-impact partnerships between innovators and large healthcare companies, governments, donors, and multilateral agencies.

Building a diverse cohort of innovators

i3 has provided $ 3 million in direct grant funding to 60 start-ups across 16 African countries in the past two years. The program has also established a diverse cohort of innovators, with 43% being women-led and 20% Francophone-led.

“The i3 program continues to differentiate itself through the transformative power of local innovation, and I am eager to see the significant impact this cohort will undoubtedly make.” Dr. Ashifi Gogo, CEO and Founder at Sproxil said.

Image: i3