APEX Medical Laboratories: Helping Malawians get specialised healthcare services

FULL TRANSCRIPT Narrator: Mental health in Africa is often misperceived, leading to the stigmatisation of people with mental health issues. Because of this, those in need of treatment usually put it off. The cost of therapy doesn’t help either. On this episode of Built in Africa, we put the spotlight on Shezlong, the first mental health-tech solution in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). According to a survey carried out by Egypt’s Ministry of Health in 2018, about 25 million people in Egypt — a quarter of the population — are suffering from a range of mental illnesses.  SFX: Ambulance siren.  In 2014, Ahmed Abu ElHaz, an Egyptian software engineer, was in an accident that almost cost him his limbs.  Ahmed Abu ElHaz: I had a severe depression after the accident and I wanted to go to a therapist to recover. But unfortunately, in Egypt, and similarly around Africa, it’s very difficult to find a good therapist.  Narrator: Given his previous background as a consultant with the World Health Organisation on mental health, Ahmed decided to build a platform to tackle the problem he faced. Ahmed Abu ElHaz: I thought about how we can connect licensed therapists with anybody having mental disorders in a convenient, private, and anonymous way.  Narrator: Ruminating on how to tackle the problem, he considered stigmatisation, misconception, contradictions, and religious stance on mental health disorders, and concluded that online was the way to go. Ahmed Abu ElHaz: The online therapy, definitely, it’s more convenient than clinics in different ways. The first thing is the people. It’s easier to share their emotions and share their thoughts in their houses, rather than going to the clinics. Narrator: And so, in 2015, Shezlong was born as ...

Build the money of the future at https://currency.techpoint.africa/ Narrator: Intro The speakers on the panel, in the order that you hear them are: Panel moderator, Christine Edith Dikongué. She is the co-founder of AfricaHacks, a digital startup mentorship platform.Wiza Jalakasi, Head of Global BD & Research, Hover Developer Services and;Oluwatobi Otokiti, founder, ProductDive & Senior Growth Product Manager at Flutterwave Panel session 01:36 – What does building products with African design mean to you (panelist)? 06:29 – What roles do languages and currency play in building products for Africans? 10:22 – Other specific considerations to keep in mind when building for different African regions 16:00 – Post-COVID, do product teams really need to be on the ground to build products that solve real problems for Africans? 17:37 – What are some frameworks, tools and platforms that African product designers can use to reach more people like them? 19:04 – Oluwatobi on whether product teams need to be on ground 21:52 – Building digital solutions that solve actual problems 28:55 – Audience question: Recommendations for first-time founders on getting their product into the market. Narrator: Outro Please subscribe, share and drop a review of this podcast, by searching for ‘Built in Africa’ on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also email us feedback at [email protected] For more stories on startups and innovation in Africa, please visit techpoint.africa ...

FULL TRANSCRIPT Narrator: Around the world, most farmers have suffered different sets of challenges in scaling and growing their farms. Although lending and crowdfunding platforms have popped up over the past years, it’s still very difficult for smallholder farmers to access financing. Some banks and other financial entities have employed unsavoury and predatory tactics that affect these agricultural businesses in the long term. In this episode of Built In Africa, we’ll be taking a look at how Kenyan startup, Apollo Agriculture, is solving the credit problem small-scale farmers face with technology. In 2015, Geneva-based policy advisory firm, Dalberg Global Development Advisors conducted some research about small-scale farming. From its findings, $450b was required to meet the needs of smallholder farmers around the world. But these farmers only got $31b, which was less than one-tenth of the supposed financing. Coming closer to home, The World Bank reported that while agriculture made up 18% of sub-Saharan Africa’s GDP, lending to the stakeholders in the agricultural sector represented only 1%. If there’s anyone who understands the struggles of smallholder farmers in Africa, it is Kenyan entrepreneur, Benjamin Njenga. Benjamin Njenga: “I grew up on a farm and my mother, a smallholder farmer, used to plant with low quality seeds, no fertiliser, harvested only 5 bags per acre each year” Narrator: That was Benjamin Njenga recalling his mother’s experience running her farm Benjamin Njenga:  “We knew if she would have been able to access fertiliser and hybrid seeds, her production would double but she couldn’t access the credit to buy these tools.” Narrator: The experience motivated Benjamin’s desire to solve the problem he faced with his mother. He would go on to study agribusiness and management at the university. He also ...