HEALTH CARE

Nigeria has the largest population in Africa, with over 210 million people. It has the second largest density of medical doctors among West African countries, although it is still quite low compared to the actual demand for such a large country (3.8 doctors per 10,000 people — or 0.38 doctors per 1,000 people). In 2019, health care accounted for 6% of total household spending in Nigeria, with higher rates in rural areas than in metropolitan areas. According to the latest WHO figures, 77 percent of health-care spending in Nigeria is paid for out of pocket (absence of insurance).

According to UNICEF, contaminated drinking water and inadequate sanitary conditions in Nigeria increase the risk of water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, which kills more than 70,000 children under the age of five each year. Only 26.5 percent of the population has access to improved drinking water and sanitation. Also, 23.5 percent of the population defecate in the open. Furthermore, Nigeria produces around 35 million tons of solid trash each year, of which only 20–30% is collected. The careless disposal of MSW has clogged sewers and drainage systems, suffocating water bodies. The majority of garbage is generated by households and, in some circumstances, by local industries, artisans, and traders, and it litters the adjacent area. As a result, findings have repeatedly established the link between good ecosystems and community people’ health.

The Nigerian healthcare sector, which has mostly demonstrated resiliency during and after Covid, is nonetheless beset by negative systemic circumstances throughout its value chain. To reach a truly sustainable healthcare sector, we must redesign our processes to increase efficiency, establish local capabilities, and create new markets, all of which leads to a virtuous cycle in which mortality rates drop and mental, physical, and physiological wellness scales up.

Science and data have continually revealed that our long-standing way of life as well as economic practices have wreaked havoc on the environment and, in a seemingly natural chain reaction, have had negative consequences for human health. Environmental risks and poor infrastructure, such as landfills and clogged drainage systems, are reducing people’s life expectancy in both rural and urban locations. Environmental sustainability allows for the creation of healthy environments and the rethinking of new ways of existence.

• The problem statements are centred around 2 themes, namely; 

1. General Inadequacy of Infrastructural Facilities
2. Contaminated water and 
3. Poor Waste Disposal

Poor logistics or transportation of drugs and other medical toolkits, inadequate staffing, poor health facilities, expensive drugs and medical procedures challenged by lack of financial capabilities of clients/patients are some of the wicked problems that remains existential to the improvement of the sector.

We are looking for entrepreneurs, students and student groups, and cross-departmental alliances to provide technology-enabled solutions to the following agricultural thematic focus;

1. Health infrastructures and value-added services
2. Clean water
3. Efficient waste disposal
4. Access to healthcare-enabled financial credit

• Opportunity/Perks – Participants stands the chance to be incubated for a finite period at Inqumax where the following services will be provided; 

1. Standard 3 months InquMax incubation and lifetime support
2. Team development,  
3. Product/Service development, 
4. Business development, 
5. Market development, 
6. Legal support
7. Strategic partnerships and 
8. Access to funding.