Better Future For All Association

Prescribed medications are so time-consuming and demanding in Cameroon and other sub-Saharan regions that they are lethal. It's hard to tell which pharmacist will have a specific drug. There is also a lack of communication among pharmacies and end-users, who have driven many to go to drug dealers on the road. This illegal activity is worth more than 25% of the national drug market. (Cameroonian government)

To mitigate these problems, we have developed a cost-effective M-heath app refers to as Pharmafast where patients and users will be able to locate nearby pharmacies and measure the distance to be covered to the nearest drugstore that carries their desire drugs, know the exact pharmacies where to buy their medicines at a given price, and pharmacies that open at late hours. 

Our solution will serve the lives of more than 50 million people if it is scaled to other Africa countries.

Finding prescription medicines in Cameroon and other Sub-Saharan countries is so time-consuming and stressful that it can be deadly. This is because it is difficult to know which drugstore will carry a particular medication and prices are equally unpredictable as it varies from one pharmacy to another. A lady was unable to save the life of her child. After all, she was unable to obtain medications on time. Initially, she had the money for the medications but since she had to move from one drugstore in search of these medications prescribed by a physician, one-quarter of the money was spent paying the taxi after visiting five pharmacies. Her pathetic story prompted us to investigate this problem in Cameroon and the findings showed that 7 to 8 out of 10 have either lost their lives or had acquired other health complications due to these challenges. Many people have turned to roadside sellers due to a lack of knowledge about medicine pricing supplied in pharmacies. (WHO) estimates that 200,000 deaths per annum could be prevented if people did not use counterfeit drugs and this illegal activity is worth more than 25% of the national drug market. (Cameroonian government)

Pharmafast is a cost-effective and accurate m-health App where user can locate nearby pharmacies and measure the distance to be covered to the nearest drugstore that carries their desire drugs, know the exact pharmacies where to buy their medicines at a given price, pharmacies schedule, and users also have the opportunity to order for the delivery of their prescribed drugs by uploading an authentic prescription and pay from their mobile money wallet from their comfort zone. The Pharmafast Pharmacy Management System allows certified drugstores to own a shop on the platform and we are currently working on how to integrate it into an android handheld rechargeable printer that could be used by pharmacies and in areas where energy is not stable. Some of our features are accessible offline.

Pharmafast may be accessed in two ways. The Pharmafast Android app is accessible on Google Play, while customers with IOS, PCs or insufficient storage capacity on their phone can register an account through the online app. Users must create an account by entering their phone numbers. Following that, users will get a six-digit number code through text message to validate their account, and they will have full access to the site.

We are targeting registered pharmacies, the elderly, the physically challenged and smartphone users from 18 and above. The majority of our audience is found in urban and peri-urban centres where pharmacies are concentrated. In 2018, a lady was unable to save her child's life. She had, after all, been unable to procure prescriptions on time. She had the money for the pills at first, but because she had to go from one pharmacy to another in quest of these pills ordered by a doctor, one-quarter of the money was wasted on cab fare after visiting five pharmacies. Her heartbreaking narrative motivated us to study the issue in Cameroon and the findings revealed that 7 to 8 out of 10 people had either died or had various health concerns as a result of these issues when in need of purchasing their prescribed drugs. To understand their demands, we had to discover the objectives they aim to achieve when purchasing quality pharmaceuticals, how they go about achieving these objectives, and the hurdles they experience along the way. In 2019, we collaborated with a few pharmacies and medical practitioners in Douala. Our staff received direct contact information from these pharmacies, and physicians advised their patients to send us an SMS if they wanted to know where they could get their prescriptions legally. We gave this information away for free, and the volume of SMS was too much for us to handle. In 2020, Better Future For All Association decided to create a platform where this information would be freely available to everyone, not only in Douala but throughout the country. Users' demands are met by Pharmafast since they will be aware of integrated pharmacies in their area, available drugs/prices, opening/closing hours, and will be able to order their desired prescriptions, which we will deliver to them within a short period. No more abandoning their job position or company for lengthy hours travelling and seeking pharmacies that offer their desired medicines, and no more deciding to acquire fake pharmaceuticals from unauthorized sellers, which is dangerous.

Many Cameroonians and other Africans buy medicine by the side of the road. This is due to a lack of correct communication from appropriate sources, as well as inaccurate information and beliefs they have been told or heard from others regarding the cost of pharmaceuticals supplied at pharmacies. To aid in the prevention of the quick spread of this dangerous information, users will have access to concrete and up-to-date information regarding authorized pharmaceuticals and their retail costs via our platform anywhere and at any time.

Pharmafast was launched on April 1st, 2021, with several significant features such as a medication bank including 5000+ drugs, over 1000 pharmacies and their geo-locations on our main shop throughout Cameroon, after testing our MVP with over 2500 people and gathering feedback. We are now issuing letters of intent to pharmacies in Cameroon to test one of our features known as the Pharmafast Pharmacy Management System, which allows registered pharmacies to own a shop on our platform and manage their data directly through their administrator.

In Cameroon, there are a few platforms that deal with digital health, but only one of them is our direct rival, and their capabilities are limited. Pharmafast has contributed additional value to the m-health market, making us distinct and creative. We are located throughout Cameroon's national territory, and some features on our platform may be available even when users are offline. We also offer delivery services to our customers, allowing them to upload an authentic prescription from a qualified health practitioner to a pharmacy of their choice. We had also seen users who do not know where pharmacies are located in their neighbourhood, and one of our features help them find a certified pharmacy and determine the distance they can go from their current position to this shop.

We are also figuring out how to incorporate the technology into a rechargeable Android mobile printer. This would allow pharmacists to save all of their data on a portable device that they can use for up to 48 hours if fully charged, allowing them to serve their customers even when there is no power. They will also save room on the counter by eliminating the need for a desktop and printer. 

Since the debut of Pharmafast in Cameroon on April 1st, 2021, we have over 8000 accounts, the majority of which were created through the web app. Because we have only covered a portion of the English-speaking population, the above number will undoubtedly rise once we begin advertising to the French community. In the next year, we want to reach around 3 million people, and in five years, we want to reach about 50 million people. 

As a young social enterprise, we begin with an impact t plan, by setting realistic goals and align our key performance indicators. The number of lives we have impacted, the number of jobs created, and the geographic coverage. We have equally realized that accountability and transparency could be good indicator that can go a long way to measuring our impact. However, we still need more knowledge on how to effectively do this.

Full time

shey vitalis mbunkur, +237675324905

Banglis Enock N. +237676035585

part-time:

SENGU Emilia: +237652097048le

Akwa Gisele: +237672008311

SHEY Vitalis is the Pharmafast project's manager and founder (BEFA). He had over five years of community development expertise and was passionate about the role of young people in contributing to long-term development. He has served as a chapter leader for the Africa Youth Human Rights and Citizen Development Initiative and Youth for Human Rights International for 3 years. In 2017, he was a Cameroonian SDG ambassador with Opportunity Knock Your Door. Many young people have been motivated by his efforts to become change-makers.

Banglis Enock is currently serving as the Assistant Supply Chain-Procurement with World Food Programme in Cameroon. He has over 10 years of experience with a positive track record in business management, finance and accounting with both the private and public sector. He is passionate about community development.

SENGU EMILIA NJWENG has over 4 years of communication experience. She is currently the communications officer for the (BEFA). She is responsible for marketing the organization's brand and keeping a balance between the public, the media, and the Enterprise. 

Akwa Gisele is a leadership and community management student. She is in charge of our outreach campaign. She has been one of the motivating agents behind this project.

We all met as volunteers in the same organization, and our energy and dedication drove us to stay on this road. We were able to make a difference in the lives of many people because of our creativity and collaborative efforts.

(BEFA) is a youth-led social company that encourages and supports entrepreneurship while also inspiring positive social change through a variety of services and businesses. Motivated by Cameroon's need to foster entrepreneurship and social inclusion. BEFA aspires to bring together and mobilize Cameroonian with ambitions and ideas that have yet to be realized. Inventiveness, Integrity, Empowerment, and Diversity are our key principles.  Cameroon is a country with over 250 native languages with its bilingual nature, our team members reflect the nation's many ethnic groupings. Regardless of your political, ethnic, or socioeconomic background, The BEFA tagline is "Leaving No One Behind." 

To successfully connect and reach out to the people we serve in Cameroon, we need a diverse group of like-minded people who speak the local language and understand the culture, and we can proudly state that we have these traits in our activities and team to some extent.

I am a believer in young leaders coming together as a community to support efforts to engage young people in the realization of their goals both through strategic opportunities with the global organization and through their existing initiatives, platforms, and networks. Young people are expected to actively support one or more of the following in advocating for their Goals. These will enable me to tackle the training of youths in his community and country respectively. Interacting with people from different countries and cultural backgrounds and obtain basic knowledge shall be an added value that will help me in creating a conducive working environment as we plan to expand our project to other Sub-Saharan countries in the years to come. I equally envisage developing management and technical skills by leading and learning from successful social entrepreneurs, while contributing to meaningful projects, work assignments in dynamic multicultural and international settings. A rich network will open up opportunities for me to work on exciting projects in Africa and enhance a win-win corporation with Africa. Exposure to leading industry innovation, new technologies and the latest global ideas to broaden my perspective shall be a turning point in my career path and that of the community and team I represent.

The raising of cash is exceedingly challenging for most start-ups, especially social ventures, as their primary purpose is a good effect. If are shortlisted, we can substantially help ourselves to conquer this difficulty.

Working together can result in greater accomplishments than each organization doing its own thing separately. Combining my experience with expertise can help our project unlock a whole new level of success.

Involvement in alliance increases awareness and by getting involved, pharmafast vision is better relayed to the world and can have a larger impact on the community.

Affiliating with other organizations and companies will increase our chance of securing grant funding, it will also facilitate greater exposure for our social venture.

Overcoming obstacles. When an organization encounters problems that hinder it from achieving its goals, the other organization may be able to help out. Besides, partnerships, coalitions and networks are more powerful than organizations that operate on their own and we do not want to miss such opportunities.

Making connections is important to get ahead in business. Connecting and networking with the right people can be key to our success.

MIT Faculty, Technology companies

One of the objectives of the 2030 Agenda is partnership and collaboration and for any organization and this goal is vital for leaders and countries to thrive and to achieve pharmafast dreams of becoming one of the best digital m-health in Africa.

I visualize building partnerships that value time and help us make the best decisions. Together, we can unlock even more value for our social enterprise and project by sharing our strengths with others, we can help each other move forward.

Finding prescription medicines in Cameroon and other Sub-Saharan countries is so time-consuming and stressful that it can be deadly. This is because it is difficult to know which drugstore will carry a particular medication and prices are equally unpredictable as it varies from one pharmacy to another. A lady was unable to save the life of her child. After all, she was unable to obtain medications on time. Initially, she had the money for the medications but since she had to move from one drugstore in search of these medications prescribed by a physician, one-quarter of the money was spent paying the taxi after visiting five pharmacies. Her pathetic story prompted us to investigate this problem in Cameroon and the findings showed that 7 to 8 out of 10 have either lost their lives or had acquired other health complications due to these challenges. Many people have turned to roadside sellers due to a lack of knowledge about medicine pricing supplied in pharmacies. (WHO) estimates that 200,000 deaths per annum could be prevented if people did not use counterfeit drugs and this illegal activity is worth more than 25% of the national drug market. (Cameroonian government)

To mitigate this problem we develop Pharmafast which is a cost-effective and accurate hybrid m-health App where user can locate nearby pharmacies and measure the distance to be covered to the nearest drugstore that carries their desire drugs, know the exact pharmacies where to buy their medicines at a given price, pharmacies schedule, and users also have the opportunity to order for the delivery of their prescribed drugs by uploading an authentic prescription and pay from their mobile money wallet from their comfort zone. The Pharmafast Pharmacy Management System allows certified drugstores to own a shop on the platform and we are currently working on how to integrate it into an android handheld rechargeable printer that could be used by pharmacies and in areas where energy is not stable. Some of our features are accessible offline. Pharmafast may be accessed in two ways. The Pharmafast Android app is accessible on Google Play, while customers with IOS, PCs or insufficient storage capacity on their phone can register an account through the online app. Users must create an account by entering their phone numbers. Following that, users will get a six-digit number code through text message to validate their account, and they will have full access to the site.

In 2019, we collaborated with a few pharmacies and medical practitioners in Douala. Our staff received direct contact information from these pharmacies, and physicians advised their patients to send us an SMS if they wanted to know where they could get their prescriptions legally. We gave this information away for free, and the volume of SMS was too much for us to handle. In 2020, Better Future For All Association decided to create a platform where this information would be freely available to everyone, not only in Douala but throughout the country. Users' demands are met by Pharmafast since they will be aware of integrated pharmacies in their area, available drugs/prices, opening/closing hours, and will be able to order their desired prescriptions, which we will deliver to them within a short time. We are currently serving the lives of more than 9000 who are using our platform and the majority no longer buy roadside medicines which are very deadly according to (WHO) because they realized it is affordable in drugstores. 

If we are opportune to be one of the winners, the funds will help us to meet up with our expenses Fixed cost such as:

Office rental, Internet connection,   Data storage and back-up,   Computers/laptops,   Table for meetings/conferences,   Comfortable office chairs,   First-aid supplies,   Power cables/extension cords, and   Accounting system.                                               

TECHNOLOGY EXPENSES 

Licensing of software, Support for IT,   Hosting of the website/web App,   Store data, Gateways for Payment, integrations or services of third parties, Sales and marketing expenses

According to these projections (Research Cosmos) in 2019, it was estimated that the ``Middle East and Africa (MEA) mHealth market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 25.27% and It is expected to reach USD 5,516.2 million, from the market value of USD 1,177.7 million in 2018 during the forecast period 2025``. 

Health Research Policy System report published in May 2021, 

``Lack of access to essential medicines presents a significant threat to achieving universal health coverage (UHC) in sub-Saharan Africa``.

These analyses showed the complete impact opportunity as well as the market potential of our project if it were to extend to other countries and The Global Fund prize will greatly ease our expansion to some of these countries.