BRINGING THE CLINIC TO WHERE KENYANS ALREADY GO
Location:
Nairobi, Kenya
Sector:
Healthcare
The Challenge
Kenya's healthcare system fails patients before they even reach a doctor.
60% of people in Kenya go to a pharmacy first when they’re sick — not a doctor. There aren’t enough clinics, and the ones that exist are too far away, too expensive, or both. Less than 15% of the population has any health coverage. Patients spend 5 to 7 hours on a single care-seeking trip. Less than 2% ever receive any follow-up care. The result: 45% higher total costs, late diagnoses, and a healthcare system that scores a net promoter score of -5.
BROKEN
ACCESS
© Tibu Health
MINUTE
CLINICS
© Tibu Health
The innovation
A clinic inside every pharmacy.
Tibu Health builds “Minute Clinics” inside existing pharmacies — a shop-in-shop model that brings primary care to where patients already go. No new real estate, no long commutes. Patients get access to medical consultations, diagnostics, vaccinations, and prescriptions on the spot. Pharmacies get increased foot traffic. Tibu gets an asset-light expansion model that can scale fast across Kenya and beyond.
Minute Clinics connect to a network of full-service Flagship Clinics for referrals, specialist care, and an ISO-level in-house laboratory. A digital layer ties it all together: electronic health records, virtual care, appointment scheduling, and AI-assisted diagnostics — all accessible through the Tibu patient app. Corporate and individual memberships (from KES 13,500 per year) make consistent healthcare affordable for the first time.
THE STANDOUT
98% NPS. 156 corporate clients. Care that meets people where they are.
Tibu doesn’t need to change patient behaviour — it meets patients where they already are. That’s a rare thing in health innovation. The model is capital-light, replicable, and built on trust: a 98% net promoter score, 22 international insurance and HMO agreements, and 156 corporate clients don’t lie. In FY2025, 11,483 patients were served through Minute Clinics alone. Proparco, the French development finance institution, has committed USD 250k in incoming financing — a strong signal of institutional confidence. Tibu is now expanding into Mombasa, Narok, and new counties.
BUILT ON
TRUST
Key Facts
Start-up Impact
Economics
- Asset-light expansion model can scale easily
- Collaboration with pharmacy chains means planning security
Health
- Improved access to health through focus on underserved communities
- Vaccinations improve health outcomes
Social
- Healthcare is one of the biggest employment sectors
- Focus on “big jobs” and female employment
People
Meet the Founders
Karl Daniel
Founder & CEO
Background in public health, decade working across health systems in Africa.
Alice Oduor
Founder & COO
Medical doctor trained at University of Nairobi, former clinician at Nairobi Hospital, leads clinical operations.
Peter Gicharu
Co-Founder & CTO
Telecommunications engineer, recognised by Google and Twitter as one of Africa's top engineers.
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