Denis Opudo
Many entrepreneurs both are passionate about providing solutions to social challenges. This has forced them to put up companies or platforms that help them in solving such like issues.
Mamalette, founded by Anike Lawal offers solutions to problems related to maternal health. Anike Lawal used her website to come up with a health network. This was specifically meant for African mothers. The startup aimed at helping the mothers to get the needed information on maternal health. She started Mamalette platform in 2013. She was compelled to do that due to lack of maternal health information in Africa.
According to her, it was hard for her to get a group of women who were in the same situation with her. This was at the time when she was expecting her first born. She adds that up to now the platform links both expectant and new mothers to vital information. It offers them information both offline and online. Mamalette was started with capital raised by Lawal from family members. A fraction of the starting capital came from her savings.
Apart from promoting sustainability Mamalette has remained relevant. It has managed that by responding promptly to users’ suggestions and questions. She adds that the prompt response to ideas and questions has helped the platform to grow further.
The online maternal health network has managed to grow drastically since its launch. It is currently boasting of more than 40,000 members every month. Lawal says that the platform collaborates with medical practitioners and other medical experts. This helps the platform to respond well to suggestions and responses from the users. She admits that the platform is undergoing various challenges in its operations. One of the difficulties is the big gap that is present in the infrastructure. She also adds that it is not a walk in the park when it comes to operating a sustainable business in the country.
According to her Mamalette has managed to grow despite all the challenges. This is because it has managed to secure many partnerships. However, inadequate power supply has influenced the business negatively. This has increased the cost of operation. Lawal requested the Federal Government to narrow the wide gap on infrastructure. This will increase the lifespan of many startups.
