Titled “AI Applications in African Health Supply Chains”, the report draws on input from supply chain leaders across global health institutions on health supply chain problems, maps 20 AI solutions currently deployed in health supply chains, and profiles select solutions reporting early impact in African markets.

With African health supply chains historically hindered by systemic, well-documented bottlenecks, these findings spotlight AI-powered solutions with real-world deployments that can potentially mitigate growing health supply chain management gaps caused by rapid declines in official development assistance. However, as AI rapidly evolves, the window for stakeholders to leverage these transformative technologies is narrowing.

Impact reported by profiled solution providers includes:

• ~$38 million reduction in planned procurement expenditure through consumption-based, facility-level forecasting. Opian Technologies’ ForLab Plus platform, deployed by the Ministry of Health and the Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Supply Service across more than 5,700 public health facilities, is reported to have driven the reduction.
• An 87% reduction in document processing and manual review time for a Nigerian fourth-party logistics provider, following a small-scale pilot led by the Global Fund with AI firm V7 Labs. This led to ~960 hours saved and a drop in invoice-to-pay cycles from 13 days to 3 days
• In Kenya, InSupply Health’s SMArT tool, co-created with the Ministry of Health, is reported to have cut procurement planning time from 2–3 days to under 1 hour per facility.
• A 20% reduction in overall stock levels at private pharmacies in Morocco, powered by Distripha’s AI inventory planning model.

Salient Advisory is calling for global health organizations to advocate for equitable and sustained access to AI infrastructure for African innovators, invest in Africa-based AI capabilities, and fund independent studies on cost impact to help build the evidence base for broader adoption. Governments should establish supply chain cost baselines before procuring AI solutions, develop AI policy frameworks, invest in internal technical capacity, and update procurement processes to ensure AI outputs support effective supply chain planning.

With limited impact data on cost reduction, the firm is also urging solution providers to ground their business cases in verified, cost-linked impact data.

Deji Ogunye, Director of Supply Chain at Salient Advisory, commented: “Early evidence suggests AI solutions are delivering measurable results in specific contexts, offering health systems a promising path to do more with less. But self-reported results from a limited number of deployments are not yet sufficient on their own to drive adoption at scale. What’s needed now is coordinated action, from credible impact evidence to policy frameworks, to move from isolated deployments to system-wide transformation.”

Ann Allen, Senior Program Officer, Gates Foundation, commented: “This report offers a valuable evidence base for how AI is already being applied to real supply chain challenges across the continent and flags the need for timely action to ensure promising AI innovations in Africa have equitable access to AI infrastructure. We look forward to continued collaboration with partners across the ecosystem to build on these early results.”

Download the full AI applications report here.

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The collaboration enables businesses to access globally connected stablecoin liquidity for faster cross-border payments, more efficient treasury management, and quicker settlement of international transactions, reducing many of the delays and costs associated with traditional banking channels.

This announcement comes as businesses across Africa increasingly seek faster and more reliable ways to move money internationally. Cross-border payments remain expensive and slow, treasury management has become more complex amid currency volatility, and fragmented banking systems continue to create friction for businesses operating across multiple markets. At the same time, the International Monetary Fund recently noted that Nigeria ranks second globally on Chainalysis’ Crypto Adoption Index and highlighted the importance of regulated infrastructure to support continued adoption.

Built on Busha’s SEC-licensed digital asset foundation, Busha Business was created to meet that need by providing compliant financial infrastructure that helps businesses move, manage, and grow money across borders.

Today, Busha Business serves more than 1,500 businesses across Nigeria and Kenya. In Kenya alone, more than 250 businesses process millions of Kenyan shillings in daily transactions through the platform to pay international suppliers, manage treasury operations, and settle cross-border payments.

“Cross-border transactions are still slow and expensive for the businesses and individuals who depend on them, especially in emerging markets, and closing that gap requires collaboration between companies committed to solving it,” said Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether. “Together with Busha, we’re enabling faster, more reliable money movement across Africa and advancing our shared commitment to building resilient, inclusive financial infrastructure globally.”

By leveraging Tether’s global ecosystem, Busha Business provides businesses with access to stablecoin liquidity that supports international commerce, simplifies treasury operations, and reduces dependence on slower, more expensive payment rails.

Busha Business serves large corporates, importers and exporters, e-commerce merchants, SMEs, fintech companies, and developers building financial products for African markets. Through Busha Pay, businesses can accept international payments from customers worldwide, with settlement in USD. In contrast, its business savings products enable companies to earn daily yields on idle USD and Naira balances, offering highly competitive, market-driven rates powered by licensed third-party asset management partners.

The collaboration reflects a broader shift in global commerce as businesses increasingly adopt stablecoins for international payments, liquidity management, and treasury operations. Rather than treating stablecoins solely as investment assets, businesses are using them as practical financial infrastructure and quicker settlement rails for everyday commercial activity.

The announcement also builds on Busha’s long-term vision of expanding stablecoin-powered financial infrastructure across Africa. Earlier this year, speaking at Africa Tech Summit Nairobi, Busha Co-founder and COO Moyo Sodipo called for greater usage of African and locally relevant stablecoin infrastructure to improve trade across Sub-Saharan Africa and reduce reliance on legacy payment systems built for other markets.

“Businesses need financial infrastructure that moves at the speed of modern commerce,” said Moyo Sodipo, Co-founder and COO of Busha. “Through our collaboration with Tether, we are giving businesses access to globally connected liquidity on licensed infrastructure designed for faster payments, stronger treasury management, and more efficient international trade. This is another step toward building the financial rails that African businesses need to compete globally.”

As African businesses continue to expand beyond their domestic markets, demand for regulated stablecoin infrastructure is expected to grow alongside the increasing adoption of digital assets for commercial use. Collaboration between licensed regional infrastructure providers and global stablecoin networks will play an important role in shaping how businesses access capital, settle international transactions, and participate in the global economy.

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Open to the public, the stations will serve electric buses and vans, trucks, passenger vehicles, and other compatible electric vehicles, expanding access to reliable charging infrastructure and making electric vehicle operations practical across inter-city routes in Kenya.

The Sabaki charging station is equipped with both CCS2 and GB/T DC 100kW fast chargers, capable of charging a typical passenger vehicle in under one hour, with compatibility extending across a wide range of commercial electric vehicles. All sites under the partnership will feature similar charging technology and offer charging at an indicative rate of KES 48 per kWh ensuring consistent and reliable experience across the network.

Speaking about the partnership, Jit Bhattacharya, CEO and Co-Founder of BasiGo, said:

“Scaling electric mobility requires infrastructure, and that’s exactly what this partnership with Rubis is building. We are creating the infrastructure that will power EV operations beyond Nairobi and connect communities across Kenya. This is a massive step forward for Kenya’s E-mobility industry, and it is a model we intend to replicate as we scale across the region.”

Moses Nderitu, Managing Director, Kenya, BasiGo, added:

“The question is no longer whether operators and the public want to go electric, but whether the infrastructure is in place to support them at scale. Every charging station we deploy along key transport corridors strengthens the business case for electric mobility and makes intercity electric transport more practical, reliable, and commercially viable. Partnerships like this are critical to building the confidence needed to accelerate EV adoption across the country.”

Frederic Maupetit, Managing Director, Rubis Energy Kenya said;

“This partnership between BasiGo and Rubis Energy Kenya is a pivotal step in powering Kenya’s sustainable future. By putting our retail network behind the next generation of mobility, we are making EV travel practical for Kenyans along major transport corridors. This is a clear signal of Rubis’ commitment to leading the energy transition here”

Olivier Sabrie, CEO Rubis Energy East and Southern Africa said’;

“Kenya is quickly becoming a proving ground for what is possible across our footprint. This deal shows how Rubis is evolving from fuel distributor to full energy partner. A shift we expect to see replicated across East and Southern Africa.”

With RUBiS network coverage of more than 300 stations in Kenya and more in the East and Southern African region and BasiGo having the largest network of DC fast chargers for electric vehicles in East Africa, this partnership will continue to expand the EV infrastructure needed to support reliable, scalable electric mobility, with additional charging sites planned across key transport corridors in Kenya and the wider region.

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ARAF invests in fast-growing food and agribusinesses that help smallholder farmers adapt to climate change, expanding beyond ARAF’s current activities in East and West Africa into North Africa as well. ARAF has already directly reached more than 3 million smallholder farmers through its 12 portfolio companies, with more than 80% of farmers reporting an increase in income and yield as a result. Its future ambition is to create direct impact for at least four million additional farmers.

“Climate change is a fact of life, and climate resilience for farmers is the difference between a good season and the risk of losing everything,” said Tamer El-Raghy, Managing Director of ARAF. “This newly committed capital allows us to continue supporting climate resilience for farmers, while seeking to provide financial returns for our investors as we expand beyond East and West Africa into North Africa, where millions of farmers are affected by climate change.”

Smallholder farmers produce nearly 80% of Africa’s food, yet climate shocks — drought, flooding, and increasingly erratic rainfall — put their livelihoods, and the food systems that depend on them, at direct risk. That dependence cuts both ways: when a harvest fails, the damage ripples from a single farmer’s income out to the regional food supply. Limited access to finance, inputs, agronomy support, and markets only compound the risk, leaving farmers with few tools to absorb the shock. ARAF is designed to meet that gap by investing in fast-growing, scalable companies whose business models help farmers adapt and become more resilient to climate change.

“ARAF proved that resilience is investable, not theoretical,” said Acumen’s President and Chief Investment Officer Carsten Stendevad. “We’re bringing more blended capital and more partners to the table to help smallholder farmers across Africa adapt to a changing climate. This is the kind of capital the moment demands.”

Current anchor investors in the newly committed capital include returning partners the Green Climate Fund, FMO, and Proparco — all of which backed ARAF since inception — joined by new investors Swedfund, BIO, and FASA, alongside a family office investor.

“GCF, having served as the anchor investor in ARAF I, through our ongoing partnership with Acumen has demonstrated how blended finance can mobilize private capital for climate-resilient agriculture,” said Catherin Koffman, Green Climate Fund Director of the Africa Region. “Such financing supports innovative agribusinesses and strengthens the resilience of smallholder farmers and agricultural supply chains. GCF is increasing its commitment to expand the fund’s geographic reach and scale up climate-resilient investments for farmers, who are among the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.”

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The decision to scale follows sixteen months of joint work, during which the two partners researched the use of digital payments across seventeen countries, consulted UNDP country offices and stakeholders, and implemented live pilots in Haiti, Syria, Kenya, Guatemala, and The Gambia, with two further solutions developed to a working prototype in Colombia and Papua New Guinea. In parallel, the Sustainable Development Goals Blockchain Accelerator, strategically led by UNDP AltFinLab, matched a cohort of payment solutions built on the Stellar network with real UNDP programme challenges, producing a portfolio of graduated solutions with documented pathways to scale within existing country office programmes.

These pilots produced concrete evidence rather than promising projections. In Aleppo, UNDP delivered Cash for Work stipends to beneficiaries digitally and recorded every transaction on-chain, which reduced the estimated cost of distribution from about 10 percent of funds under conventional methods to about two percent, with every participant receiving and cashing out their payment. In Haiti, a pilot built for low connectivity continued to function with a 100 percent success rate, even when the cellular network failed entirely during testing, settling payments almost instantly under the conditions that communities actually face. Across all of the pilots, programmes gained something they had not had before, which is a traceable record of where money went.

Earlier in 2026, UNDP featured part of this work in the report New Tech, New Partners: Transforming Development in the Digital Era, which set out why reliable digital payment infrastructure matters for financial inclusion, for remittances, and for reaching people in fragile and conflict-affected settings that traditional financial systems sometimes fail to reach.

The new agreement turns these results into a capability that does not depend on any single project or funding cycle. Over the coming period the two partners will establish the governance, onboarding, and safeguards that allow UNDP to adopt digital payments responsibly, move validated solutions from the existing pipeline into active use, extend the same infrastructure across different categories of UNDP programming – from humanitarian response to social protection and financial inclusion – and consolidate the evidence and operating guidance that the service needs to continue and grow within the development system.

Throughout this phase, the Stellar Development Foundation will provide technical advisory support and coordination across the Stellar ecosystem, including expertise on the network and its protocols, and engagement with the solution providers operating within the UNDP pipeline, while UNDP will retain responsibility for delivery and implementation.

Robert Pasicko, UNDP Alternative Finance Lab, said: “We have shown that digital payments can reach the people that conventional systems miss, and in some of the hardest places to operate. The work now is to make that capability ordinary, so that a country office can use it with confidence as part of how it already works, rather than treating each deployment as an experiment.”

Candace Kelly, Chief Legal Officer, Stellar Development Foundation, said: “These pilots showed what open, public blockchain infrastructure can do when it is built around the realities of the last mile. We are proud to continue this work with UNDP and to help turn a set of successful pilots into a durable part of how development and humanitarian finance is delivered.”

The agreement runs through 2027 and will conclude with a consolidated evidence base, a scaling playbook, and a formal handover, so that the capability outlasts the partnership that created it.

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The additional equity from Roha and Meridiam extends Raxio’s capital base from a previous US$350 million, building on a US$100 million financing package secured from the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) last year, along with debt funding from Proparco and the Emerging Africa & Asia Infrastructure Fund (EAAIF).

Raxio is poised for further momentum as Africa’s digital infrastructure approaches an inflection point, with McKinsey projecting “a phase of accelerated growth” boosting need for installed capacity from 0.4 gigawatts today to between 1.5 and 2.2 gigawatts by 2030, unlocking at least $20 billion in new revenue across the value chain.[1]

Raxio is catering to this demand, having established the continent’s widest data centre footprint, with facilities in Uganda, Ethiopia, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire and Angola, and planned expansion into Tanzania under development. All are Tier III certified, ensuring high levels of reliability, and colocation carrier-neutral, which enables a wide range of organisations to interconnect with multiple network providers — delivering greater resilience, flexibility and choice.

With this expanded capacity coming online, Raxio signed contracts for six times more power during the first half of 2026 than in the same period last year. As the market evolves, Raxio is receiving a growing pipeline of opportunities requiring deployments of 10 megawatts and above – significantly larger than past projects. The company is increasing rack densities to support higher-performance computing and AI workloads while evaluating further expansion opportunities across the continent.

“Demand for high-quality data centre infrastructure continues to accelerate across Africa, driven by rapid digital adoption, cloud migration and the emergence of significant AI workloads,” said Robert Skjodt, Chief Executive Officer of Raxio Group. “As we enter the next phase of growth, this additional capital strengthens our ability to capture these opportunities and continue delivering world-class, carrier-neutral infrastructure for our customers.”

“Raxio has built a unique platform that is positioned to take the lead in serving some of Africa’s fastest-growing digital markets,” said Brooks Washington, Founder and CEO of Roha. “Since we launched Raxio, the company’s success has continued to create opportunities at the forefront of digital infrastructure in Africa, with even more room to grow than we initially planned. We are pleased to deepen our support for the business and look forward to helping accelerate its next stage of growth. ”

“Our continued investment reflects our confidence in Raxio’s management team, strategy and long-term role in enabling Africa’s digital transformation,” said Mete Saracoglu, Chief Operating Officer for Africa at Meridiam. “Raxio has established a leading platform with strong growth characteristics, and we see significant opportunity to scale the business further as market demand continues to evolve.”

Raxio has built more greenfield data centres in Africa than any other independent player. The company designs and operates its facilities to world-class standards for efficient power and water usage and continues to explore opportunities to incorporate renewable energy solutions alongside grid infrastructure as demand scales.

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Having established itself as a market leader in HR technology, Seamless Technologies is extending its capabilities beyond workforce management to address one of the continent’s most significant challenges: access to financial services. Working with partners, the company is enabling businesses and their employees to access financial solutions directly within the flow of work, creating new opportunities for financial inclusion, operational efficiency, and business growth.

Under the new corporate structure, Seamless Technologies operates through three core verticals: SeamlessHR, its flagship workforce management platform; Breeze, an embedded financial service that gives businesses and workers access to Employee Self-Service, financial solutions including payroll financing, earned wage access, and lifestyle services; and SeamlessProcure, a procurement solution designed to streamline enterprise purchasing and vendor management.

As part of this evolution, Seamless Technologies is expanding its workforce technology portfolio with the launch of BWOP (Blue Collar Operations Platform), a solution built for organisations managing frontline and shift-based workforces. Together with SeamlessHR’s existing platform for office-based teams, BWOP enables the company to support the full spectrum of workforce operations, helping businesses digitise attendance, payroll, workforce records, communication, and employee self-service regardless of where work happens.

Supporting these products is Samira, the company’s artificial intelligence layer, designed to help organisations and employees automate tasks, access insights, and interact more intelligently with technology across the Seamless ecosystem.

Commenting on the transition, Dr Emmanuel Okeleji, CEO and Co-Founder of Seamless Technologies, said, “This evolution reflects a much bigger opportunity than HR technology alone. As we looked at the challenges facing businesses and workers across Africa, it became clear that access to finance sits at the centre of economic participation and productivity. Our expansion into financial services is a natural extension of our mission, and Seamless Technologies gives us the platform to solve these challenges at a much larger scale.”

Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder Deji Lana added, “The future belongs to platforms that connect people, work, and financial services in a seamless way. Through financial solutions, artificial intelligence, and our growing suite of products, we are building infrastructure that helps businesses operate more efficiently and enables workers to access more opportunities.”

Irfan Keshavjee, Chairman of the Advisory Board, said, “The transition to Seamless Technologies reflects the company’s maturity and ambition. Having built a leading position in HR technology, the business is now entering a much larger addressable market with the capabilities to create long-term value across multiple sectors.”

The transition provides a unified corporate identity designed to support product expansion and international market entry, while enabling individual product brands to maintain clear positioning and operational focus.

The move reflects the company’s long-term commitment to building technology infrastructure that supports productivity, access, and enables prosperity for working Africans.

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Mastercard and Flash, a fintech company in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), announced a strategic collaboration whereby Flash will issue physical and virtual prepaid cards,  extending its payment services beyond aggregation and giving its users the ability to pay online and at point-of-sale terminals.

The collaboration marks a significant step in expanding access to secure, convenient digital payment solutions in the DRC, a country of over 100 million people where demand for accessible financial services continues to grow. By integrating Mastercard prepaid cards into FlashApp, Flash users will be able to complement the platform’s existing suite of services with the reach and security of a globally accepted payment network.

Jonathan Johannesen, CEO, Flash, said “Partnering with Mastercard is a defining step in Flash’s mission to modernize payments infrastructure in Central Africa. This collaboration allows us to bridge cash and digital economies at scale, unlocking access to card-based financial services for millions of users who have historically been excluded. It’s about building rails for the next generation of financial inclusion.”

Flash currently serves more than three million customers through a nationwide network of 4,000 agents and 160 agencies across the DRC and Republic of Congo.

Through FlashApp, its proprietary super app available on Google Play and the App Store, users can access over 27 financial services including mobile money, remittances, merchant payments, and bill payments. The addition of Mastercard prepaid cards is expected to augment this ecosystem by enabling cardholders to transact online and in-store, bridging the gap between cash-based and digital economies.

“This collaboration with Flash reflects Mastercard’s continued commitment to expanding access to secure and inclusive digital payment solutions across the DRC. By combining Flash’s strong local presence with Mastercard’s global network, the collaboration aims to enable more people and businesses to participate confidently in the digital economy and support the country’s ongoing financial inclusion journey.” Mohamed Benomar, country manager for North West Africa at Mastercard.

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Under this relationship, Xoom transfers are converted by Flutterwave and settled locally in NGN. This helps enable quick transfers directly into recipients’ bank accounts at Access Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Zenith Bank PLC, First Bank of Nigeria, Guaranty Trust Bank, and additional participating banks across Nigeria

“We’re excited to have been chosen by Xoom for their Nigeria expansion,” said Olugbenga “GB” Agboola, Founder and CEO of Flutterwave. ” Millions of Nigerians rely on money from abroad to support everyday needs, whether it’s families receiving help from loved ones, freelancers getting paid for their work, or individuals earning income from the global economy. This helps make it easy and more reliable for people in Nigeria to receive funds and stay connected to opportunities beyond borders. “

Nigeria is the leading remittance recipient in Sub-Saharan Africa, receiving over $20 billion in personal remittances in 2024. Despite this volume, receiving international payments has historically remained complex due to FX constraints and settlement delays. This collaboration helps address those challenges in a market of more than 232 million people, where the ICT sector is projected to contribute 21% of GDP by 2027.

By combining Xoom’s expansive reach with Flutterwave’s local compliance and banking partnerships, the two companies are providing a more accessible financial corridor for the continent.

Xoom, a PayPal service, is a fast and secure international digital money transfer service that enables consumers to send money, pay bills, and reload phones for friends and family in approximately 160 markets globally. As part of PayPal’s global payments ecosystem, Xoom leverages advanced fraud protection, compliance capabilities, and a trusted global network to help millions of customers move money quickly and securely across borders. Xoom continues to expand its global footprint by strengthening local partnerships and enhancing digital-first cross-border payment experiences.

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The loyalty program will be available across key Valu products and services, including merchant business, prepaid card limit top-ups, Sha2labaz, and Shop’IT in-app checkout purchases, creating a unified rewards experience across the company’s growing ecosystem.

Customers completing interest-bearing transactions will receive instant cashback percentages from their financed amount.

Additionally, promotional transactions, including zero-interest financing plans, Spark’IT, cashback and discount campaigns, will remain eligible for loyalty rewards, granting customers additional cashback as well.

Cashback earned through the program will remain valid for one year from the transaction date, providing customers with flexibility and convenience in utilizing their rewards.

Commenting on the launch, Omar Abdelhady, Chief Growth & Product Officer at Valu, said: “At Valu, we are reshaping financial experiences by delivering simple, transparent rewards with immediate value. With Egypt’s first instant cashback loyalty program for payments, customers benefit from every eligible transaction instantly without waiting, collecting points, or navigating complex redemption processes. This launch reflects our commitment to a more engaging financial ecosystem and to rewarding customers seamlessly across the Valu ecosystem.”

The launch further reinforces Valu’s commitment to enhancing customer engagement through innovative financial solutions that deliver greater flexibility, convenience, and value, while supporting the continued evolution of digital payments and consumer finance in Egypt.

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