We want to make investments that are in underserved niches at the forefront of health challenges, and where possible, in services that will attract returning diaspora. This is beginning with a consultation-driven diagnostic hub in Addis Ababa.
Our second investment sector is healthcare service delivery. The World Health Organisation projects that over the next ten years Africa will experience the largest increase in death rates from cardiovascular disease, cancer, respiratory disease and diabetes, which are all non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Yet an estimated 80% of regional health budgets has been allocated to communicable diseases for the last decade. This is resulting in a clear commercial opportunity with a social impact.
We are beginning the private sector part of this journey by developing a hub and spokes model of healthcare provision in Ethiopia and building the country’s first premium, consultation-driven diagnostic hub in Addis Ababa. This next step was informed by our exiting non-profit experience in the sector. This included our existing Pharo Foundation Diagnostic and Clinical Services Centre in Benishangul-Gumuz, where we became aware of the significance of NCD under-diagnosis and achieved positive EBITDA after only 2 years of operation. The new hub will be an outpatient diagnostic centre or well-resourced hospital, with imaging, laboratory, doctors’ offices, pharmacy and other services.
The spokes are peripheral units which may have different levels of service depending on the catchment market. They give basic services and if the need arises, referrals can be done to the hub. Service quality is client-focused, with fast and predictable turnaround time and there should be an ability for patients to get second opinions within the network and through telemedicine from specialists outside the network.
In Ethiopia, we are considering the states of Oromia (which has 44mn outpatient visits annually), SNNP or Amhara (40.6mn outpatients) as potential locations.