( ENSPIRE News ) Babymigo is Expanding Access to Affordable Healthcare and Providing a Support Network for Mothers and Expecting Mothers Across Nigeria
ENSPIRE Contributor: Iris Michelsen
Babymigo, the fastest-growing online parenting community in Nigeria, is a woman-owned startup that was founded to address the lack of access to quality healthcare for mothers and expecting mothers across Africa. Babymigo is focused on providing expert-verified locally relevant health information, education, and resources as well as concierge services relating to pregnancy, parenting, childbirth, and reproductive health via SMS (Text), mobile app, and web at scale. This access to information, along with the inclusive community empowers women to make informed decisions regarding their own and their child’s health.
Babymigo’s online community offers women and families access to expert information on pregnancy and motherhood, the ability to connect with and ask questions of trusted experts, and a support network of other mothers. Since its inception, Babymigo has reached over 200,000 users across multiple locations in Nigeria, including vulnerable women in hard-to-reach areas by having an easily reachable online community. Babymigo has been featured on Yahoo, Forbes, and Time Magazine and is also backed by Facebook and Google, in addition to being the recipient of the Google Startups Black Founders Fund in Africa.
Co-founder and CEO of Babymigo Kemi Olawoye is passionate about reducing the incidence of maternal and child mortality in Africa through technology. Thanks to her inspiring work, she has been the recipient of many awards, including the 16th Edition Future Awards Africa in Advocacy and Activism, 2021 Woman Entrepreneur & Spirit of GIST by US Department of State, 2021 Africa Choice Awards: Young Entrepreneur of the Year, and 2019 Nigeria’s 100 Most Inspiring Women.
ENSPIRE talked with the co-founder and CEO of Babymigo Kemi Olawoye about what inspired her to co-found Babymigo, the company’s success, and her hopes for the future of Babymigo.
What are some of the challenges that mothers in Nigeria are facing that you hope to mitigate through Babymigo?
“Women across Africa, including mothers, face several challenges daily imposed by the society, culture, and systems. However, some specific issues facing mothers in Africa including Nigeria include untimely access to trained medical personnel, lack of culturally relevant health information, access to credible resources and tools, and inadequate hyper local support services among several others. At Babymigo, our goal is to leverage technology to mitigate these challenges and improve maternal and child health outcomes across Africa.”
What makes you so passionate about providing a support system for mothers and expecting mothers in Nigeria?
“Every day, approximately 830 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth with 99% of them being from developing countries such as Nigeria, where the lack of education and support is as much a cause of this as poor health care is. The right support system is not only important but crucial for improved health and better survival among expecting mums, parents and children under five.”
How has Babymigo helped women across Nigeria navigate pregnancy and motherhood?
“Babymigo is Nigeria’s fastest growing parenting startup that provides access to expert-led health information (such as vaccination reminders, antenatal care, Q & A services) and hyperlocal childcare services to pregnant women and parents via SMS (Text), App and Web Portal.
“We offer a trusted support network for expecting moms and parents with a platform that allows users to ask and receive questions from experts, consult with doctors virtually regardless of location, leverage tools including the immunization calendar among several others.
“In addition, we offer a range of products including Mamacare – a maternity plan that offers pregnant women discounted antenatal, child delivery and baby care services at over 120 partner hospitals across Nigeria, Bloomcare – a digital clinic for women and family health and Classes by Babymigo for expecting and new mums.”
How did Babymigo build its network of experts?
“We built our credible and trusted network of experts including pediatricians, OBGYNs, nutritionists, and lactation experts among others through careful research and recruitment of experienced and qualified individuals under the different categories of information we provide. We also ensure our experts are individuals who are aligned with our vision at Babymigo and passionate about maternal and child health.”
What are your hopes for the future of Babymigo?
“At Babymigo, we believe 400 million mothers in Africa deserve access to an inclusive support system to help make informed decisions during pregnancy and parenthood. This is a fundamental human right, and this is why we are committed to being the most trusted ally for mothers in the pursuit of good health and well-being.
“Our vision is to help empower 50 million parents across Africa to raise a healthy family by 2020, reducing avoidable maternal and infant mortality.”
Babymigo is making a huge difference in the lives of women across Nigeria, and CEO Kemi Olawoye has hopes to expand its reach to include all of Africa. In healthcare, having access to quality information is everything. Babymigo offers women access to trusted experts and a supportive community of mothers regardless of class, social status, or geographic location. Going forward, this company aims to change the lives of women across Africa and ultimately reduce rates of maternal and child mortality.
Visit Babymigo’s website to learn more about the work that they do. Follow them on Instagram and Twitter to hear more about what’s next for the company. You can also follow Kemi Olawoye on Twitter to hear more from her.
Related Articles: The WellSky Foundation Donates $50k to The Black Women’s Health Imperative, 4 Black Female Nonprofit Leaders Call on Biden to Achieve Health Equity For Black Americans
