RWANDA – Viebeg Technologies, a venture capital-backed Health Tech company in Rwanda, is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to manage supply chain processes and ultimately ensuring healthcare facilities have the precise medical supplies in stock.
In addition, the health tech company is leveraging innovation to address procurement constraints hence drug stock-outs and shortage of medical equipment in health facilities in Rwanda are becoming a thing of the past.
Viebeg Technologies announced in an official statement that the firm is helping to expand access to affordable health care in Central and East Africa by aiding healthcare facilities in procuring supplies in real-time.
“Many healthcare facilities in Rwanda laud Viebeg, as they can now find essential products for their specific fields at affordable rates. An example is the Kivu Specialist Clinic, established by Dr. Amol Kulkarni, one of only three maxillofacial surgeons in Rwanda,” the company said.
The move follows recent news that the Rwanda Innovation Fund, partly financed by the African Development Bank, invested in Viebeg’s data-driven logistics platform.
Viebeg’s annual revenue increased from US$80,000 to US$180,000 six months after the funding from the Rwandan fund, representing a 125 percent growth. In addition, it is estimated that the figure will grow to $2.5 million by the end of 2022.
“The African Development Bank invested US$30 million in the Rwanda Innovation Fund. The Bank’s support aligns with the country’s National Information Communication Infrastructure (NICI) III Plan, which underscores the importance of ICT in improving service delivery to citizens,” the firm revealed.
Apart from improving revenues, the funding has enabled the company to, among other things, conduct training for its employees, access working capital, and employ more workers.
“The firm’s AI-driven medical procurement platform directly connects healthcare providers with manufacturers,” said Tobias Reiter, Viebeg Technologies Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer.
He explained that leveraging technologies removes brokers and middlemen from the value chain, adding that it generates cost savings of up to 40 percent for customers.
“We saw that many medical facilities did not have the right supplies; and also, from reports that in Africa, in every five minutes, people are dying from conditions that could be prevented if we had the right medical supplies,” Reiter noted.
The company, which was set up in 2018, works with many health facilities in Rwanda, where two million people have been treated with Viebeg products, according to Alex Musyoka, its Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer.
“It is already making inroads in other parts of East Africa, including Kenya, Burundi and Congo, and serving over 500 facilities. The company plans to expand across Africa,” Musyoka disclosed.
Dr. Abdu Mukhtar, the Bank’s Director for Industrial and Trade Development, emphasized that digital innovation can transform sectors, but it needs investment.
He further said that local investment in a local business has brought transformative local results, adding that it is a partnership model that can play well in other markets.
He observed that Viebeg is a fantastic example of what can be achieved with the right mix of innovation, entrepreneurship, and financial backing.
“It is telling that the Rwanda Innovation Fund, initiated by the Rwandan government and financed, in part, by the African Development Bank, has been catalytic in the development of Viebeg,” Dr, Abdu noted.
Liked this article? Sign up to receive our regular email newsletters, focused on Africa and World’s healthcare industry, directly into your inbox. SUBSCRIBE HERE
