LGT Venture Philanthropy is pleased to announce its new partnership with Living Goods, a non-profit headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, aiming to save lives at scale by supporting digitally empowered community health workers in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Ramping up access to healthcare across Sub-Saharan Africa. Approximately only 48% of the population in Africa have access to essential health services. Sub-Saharan Africa’s healthcare worker shortage, with only 1.55 professionals per 1,000 people, contributes to high child and maternal mortality rates. The failure to provide primary healthcare is curtailed by a lack of political prioritization in national budgets and relatively high costs. Community health systems, proven to be an affordable and effective alternative, have not been deployed optimally, resulting in subpar performance and health outcomes. These systems often suffer from outdated data management practices, lack of essential healthcare supplies, and inadequate training and compensation for CHWs leading to inconsistent and inadequate care.
Founded in 2007, Living Goods aims to maximize the potential of CHWs through its “DESC approach”, i.e. Digitally enabling, Equipping, Supervising, and Compensating CHWs for affordable, high-quality healthcare. The model operates in three modes: learning sites that serve as innovation hubs and evidence sources for community health investments, national partnerships with governments to integrate DESC best practices while pursuing co-investment agreements to reinforce government ownership, and advocacy to improve the policy landscape. A 2021 study demonstrated the DESC approach's effectiveness in the countries Living Goods supports, achieving a 30% reduction in under-five mortality and a 27% decrease in infant mortality. and a 27% decrease in infant mortality.
LGT VP’s healthcare strategy is centered around scaling access to quality and affordable primary health services in promoting universal access to quality healthcare in Sub-Saharan Africa and India. Living Goods is one of the largest community health operators on the continent, and significantly influences financing and governance, and technology infrastructure. Partnering with Living Goods not only aligns with LGT VP’s mission to scale quality primary healthcare access, but also offers insight into how the process can be sustainably led by governments.
Nava Anvari, Investment Director at LGT Venture Philanthropy, says: “We are pleased to partner with Living Goods in advancing their impactful and sustainable approach to strengthening community health systems. We look forward to seeing how their efforts continue to inspire governments to invest in digitally empowered community health workers for improved health outcomes and healthier communities across the continent.”
Emilie Chambert, CEO Living Goods, adds “We're excited to once again join forces with LGT Venture Philanthropy to strengthen our commitment to supporting CHWs on the frontlines of care. Together, we aim to bring essential health services to underserved communities, reduce the burden of priority diseases, lower mortality rates, and drive progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC). At Living Goods, we believe that true innovation in healthcare is born from collaboration. This partnership represents a critical step forward in our mission to empower communities and transform health systems from the ground up. With LGT VP’s support, we’ll scale sustainable digital health solutions that not only save lives but create lasting, positive change for the most vulnerable populations across Africa.”
Living Goods, founded 17 years ago, is a Nairobi-based nonprofit operating in Kenya, Uganda, and Burkina Faso. The organization empowers community health workers with digital tools to provide on-demand care, improving access to quality services for families in need. Living Goods partners with governments to ensure health workers have access to digital technology and medical treatments and are effectively supervised and compensated to deliver high quality and cost-effective services. By Q3 2023, Living Goods was supporting 9,400 CHWs in Kenya, Uganda and Burkina Faso to deliver care to more than 4 million people. Learn more at www.livinggoods.org.
LGT Venture Philanthropy (LGT VP) is an independent charitable foundation established in 2007 with teams in Switzerland, Sub-Saharan Africa, and India. The Foundation strives to improve the quality of life of people facing disadvantages, contribute to healthy ecosystems, and build resilient, inclusive, and prosperous communities. LGT VP focuses on strengthening the capabilities of locally rooted organizations that deliver effective, scalable solutions across health, education, and the environment, contributing directly to the SDGs. For more information, please visit www.lgtvp.com.
Read the full press release here.