One of East Africa’s leading pharmacy and telehealth providers MYDAWA is opening 30 new pharmacies in Uganda, 10 new pharmacies in Kenya as well as expanding their online pharmacy platform, aiming to reach 8.4 million patients annually by 2032. IFU invests DKK 63.5 million in MYDAWA’s ambitious healthcare expansion.
In Uganda, two thirds of all pharmacies are located in the capital of Kampala, but only 10 per cent of the population is living there. Consequently, the majority of people in Uganda has limited access to quality medicines and healthcare.
In Kenya, authorities have tried to implement control guidelines for pharmacies’ authorization of healthcare products, but uncertified products are still widely spread.
To assist in addressing these issues, IFU is investing DKK 63.5 million in MYDAWA, a leading pharmacy company currently operating 21 physical pharmacies as well as online pharmacies in Kenya and Uganda. MYDAWA distributes Novo Nordisk’s medicines and products to the local population in Kenya and collaborates with many major companies. They offer healthcare services in Uganda and Kenya’s complicated and often unmanageable healthcare systems, providing high-quality and affordable medicine and telehealth consultations.
40 new pharmacies – healthcare for 8.4 million patients The investment by IFU will enable MYDAWA to open 30 new pharmacies in Uganda, of which around 15 will be located outside of Kampala. This will improve access to healthcare for the many people living in the peri-urban regions outside the capital.
Additionally, the investment will enable MYDAWA to open 10 physical pharmacies and expand their online pharmacy capacity in Kenya. This will contribute to addressing Kenya’s challenge with widespread uncertified healthcare products, as the online pharmacy is available for all Kenyan patients, and MYDAWA’s online products are certified and of high quality.
With the significant expansion and opening of 40 new pharmacies, MYDAWA aims to provide healthcare to 8.4 million patients annually across Uganda and Kenya in 2032.
From the very beginning, MYDAWA’s mission has been to deliver better health outcomes for all Africans by ensuring access to high-quality, affordable medication through diverse and innovative channels. This investment from IFU is a testament to the power of value-aligned partnerships that champion African solutions for African challenges. Together, we are charting a path to transform healthcare access, not just in Kenya and Uganda, but across the continent.
Female leadership and fighting HIV stigma In Uganda, 71 per cent of MYDAWA’s senior management team is female, and in Kenya the number is 66 per cent. This highlights MYDAWA as a company working towards a more gender equitable future in Africa.
MYDAWA’s strong focus on female leadership aligns with our ambition to make a difference in gender equality through our investments. We want to keep developing new approaches that will maintain IFU as a front-runner in gender equality in private-sector investments in developing countries.
In Kenya, social stigma around sexual and reproductive health is common and very few women have access to the right information and safe products to make empowered decisions about their health. MYDAWA helps address this by delivering a discreet and user-friendly purchasing experience to the female costumers with HIV self-test kits as well as offering free telehealth consultations on family planning.
Managing Director and Co-head of Healthcare and Ukraine
Lisbeth Erlands
+45 33 63 75 27
Investment Director
Samuel Githinji Wathondu
+45 33 63 75 08
