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Dawa Mkononi, the Tanzanian pharmaceutical technology company, has received an investment from Africa Health Ventures to scale its digital platform for medicine distribution across Tanzania.
The investment amount was not disclosed.
“When Rowena Luk visited us in February for due diligence, what inspired us was how much she knew about healthcare in Africa and how much she genuinely cared about improving it. Long before the process was done, we were hoping they’d come on board so we could build this together,” says Joseph Paul, MD, CEO and Founder in a LinkedIn post.
Founded by Joseph Paul, Clemence Exaudi, and Asorael Ayo, Dawa Mkononi connects healthcare providers with trusted pharmaceutical suppliers through a digital platform that makes sourcing medicines faster, more transparent, and more reliable.
The company also runs a credit programme called Dawa Kwanza, built in partnership with Vodacom Tanzania and NCBA Bank Tanzania, which lets eligible health facilities receive medicine stock immediately and repay within 28 days.
The model is designed to help smaller pharmacies maintain inventory levels when cash flow is tight. Through Dawa Kwanza, the company has financed more than Sh1 billion worth of medicine stock to pharmacies and clinics across Tanzania.
The company focuses on data-driven solutions that aim to reduce stockouts, cut through fragmented procurement processes, and improve the flow of medicines from suppliers to pharmacies and clinics.
Africa Health Ventures, which focuses on early-stage health startups across the continent, said it views improving medicine distribution as one of the highest-leverage opportunities to strengthen access to care through a scalable business model. The firm said it will work with the Dawa Mkononi team to accelerate growth in the coming years.
