Senegal-based digital health startup KERA Health Platforms has secured $10 million in funding from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group. The investment will support the scaling of KERA’s AI-driven platform that connects healthcare providers with patients while digitising and analysing health data to drive more efficient, accessible care.
Founded in 2023 by Senegalese-born Moustapha Cissé, KERA is focused on bridging healthcare gaps for underserved populations in West Africa—particularly informal workers and women—by lowering patient costs and enhancing service delivery through faster payments and AI-powered tools.
Cissé holds a Ph.D. in machine learning from Université Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris. He began his career as an AI researcher at Facebook AI Research and later co-founded and led Google’s first engineering and AI research centre in Africa, based in Accra, Ghana
The IFC’s backing goes beyond capital. KERA will also receive advisory support to align with global social and environmental standards, improve corporate governance, and establish employee grievance mechanisms as it grows.
In a region where access to medical professionals remains limited—Senegal has fewer than one physician per 10,000 people—KERA’s tech-first approach offers a scalable solution to a critical challenge.
By leveraging data and artificial intelligence, KERA and the IFC aim to reimagine healthcare delivery in West Africa, improving outcomes and affordability for those who need it most.
ABOUT
Dr. Cissé is a professor at the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), where he founded and directs the African Masters in Machine Intelligence (AMMI)—a pioneering postgraduate AI program that has produced hundreds of AI professionals across the continent.
At age 19, a severe misdiagnosis in Senegal drove home the reality of healthcare challenges. This experience inspired him to leverage AI and data to improve medical access and accuracy across Africa .
Described as “championing AI for Africa’s future,” Dr. Cissé stepped away from Google in 2022 to focus on KERA, aiming to build intelligent, ethically sound healthcare solutions tailored to African contexts.
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