An Ethiopian women-led startup, YeneHealth, won first place at the Africa Fintech Summit 2025 held in Accra, Ghana, for its groundbreaking work in women’s digital health. The company, founded by Kidist Tesfaye, is using technology to make reproductive, maternal and mental healthcare more accessible across Africa. This achievement highlights how African innovation is driving solutions that respond directly to the needs of underserved women across the continent.
YeneHealth’s victory is more than just recognition. It represents progress for millions of African women who have long faced barriers to quality healthcare. The company is using innovation to bridge gaps in access and empower women to take control of their wellbeing through a digital ecosystem tailored to their realities.
At its core, YeneHealth is reshaping the future of healthcare by making it more accessible, affordable and inclusive. Through a user-friendly app that integrates AI and data analytics, women can track their menstrual cycles and pregnancies, access a library of verified health information, consult with doctors virtually and even order pharmaceutical products with discreet home delivery.
Kidist Tesfaye has applied her deep experience to build YeneHealth into Ethiopia’s first and leading femtech startup. In just its first year, the company successfully raised pre-seed funding and has since expanded its services to include business-to-business (B2B) offerings. Her leadership has not only advanced women’s health technology in Ethiopia but has also inspired a movement across Africa that places women at the center of digital innovation.
YeneHealth’s mission is to give women the tools to make informed choices about their health and wellbeing. The startup’s digital-educational platform, pharmacy services and advocacy networks all aim to promote wellness, financial literacy and social resilience among women. The company’s culturally-sensitive approach ensures that women feel safe and seen, especially in communities where stigma and lack of access have limited their health options for generations.
The Africa Fintech Summit (AFTS), where YeneHealth clinched the top spot, is one of the continent’s most influential platforms for startups and innovators. Since its inception in 2018, the Summit has been held twice a year, one edition during the Spring Meetings of the World Bank/IFC and another in a selected African country in the second half of the year.
More than just an event, the AFTS is an ecosystem-building initiative. It brings together entrepreneurs, investors, regulators and corporate leaders to share ideas, form partnerships and advance innovation across financial and technological sectors. Supported by a global advisory board of fintech pioneers, the Summit has helped startups raise over $80 million in capital, facilitated market entry for multinational corporations and supported the creation of new partnerships and policy frameworks that shape the future of African fintech.
The 2025 edition in Accra continued that legacy, with YeneHealth standing out for its unique blend of technology, social impact and business scalability. The recognition sends a powerful message: African women are not just beneficiaries of the digital age, they are leaders shaping it.
YeneHealth’s win reflects a growing wave of purpose-driven innovation emerging from Africa. It highlights how technology can be used not just for convenience but for empowerment, giving women across the continent a platform to take control of their health and futures.
As the fintech and healthtech ecosystems in Africa continue to evolve, success stories like YeneHealth’s are reminders that real impact happens when technology meets human need. From Addis Ababa to Accra and soon to the world, YeneHealth’s journey is proving that innovation rooted in inclusion can rewrite the story of women’s health in Africa.
Congratulations are in order for Kidist Tesfaye and the YeneHealth team for this outstanding achievement and for showing the world that the future of women’s health innovation is African.
