Bridgitte Boakye

Pioneer of affordable healthcare solutions for African women through innovative fintech

Bridgitte Boakye is a Ghanaian-Nigerian social entrepreneur and founder of Afia Health, a groundbreaking fintech platform launched in 2021 that revolutionized healthcare access for women across West Africa. Her vision emerged from witnessing systemic inequities during her studies in public health at Oxford University, where she discovered that 70% of Nigerian women couldn't afford basic healthcare services.

Afia Health's innovative subscription model uses blockchain technology to create micro-insurance plans costing as little as $2/month, providing access to over 500 hospitals. By partnering with MTN and Airtel Africa, the platform now serves 1.2 million users in Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya. Boakye's work was highlighted at the 2023 World Economic Forum, where she presented her 'Healthcare for All' initiative that integrates mobile payments with community health workers networks.

In 2022, she launched the Women's Health Innovation Lab (WHIL), a nonprofit incubating 30+ startups addressing issues like maternal mortality and cervical cancer screening. Her TEDx talk "Why Women's Health Should Be Africa's Tech Priority" has over 2 million views. Recent collaborations with UNICEF and the African Union have expanded her impact into policy frameworks for universal healthcare access.