DrugStoc, in partnership with The Nest Innovation Technology Park (the core implementing partner) and CcHub, successfully concluded the week-long AHEAD Africa HealthTech Hackathon 2025. The event, held at The Nest in Yaba, Lagos, served as a crucial catalyst, bringing together developers, entrepreneurs, and healthcare experts in a vibrant, collaborative environment essential for technical innovation.
The hackathon’s central mission was to accelerate digital health adoption across Africa. Participants were challenged to build impactful solutions by integrating DrugStoc’s API, focusing on critical issues plaguing the continent’s health sector: access, affordability, and interoperability. The intensive week began with technical integration sessions on November 21st, ensuring teams had the foundational assistance needed to seamlessly incorporate the platform into their prototypes.
Following days of focused development and rigorous mentorship, the event culminated in a highly competitive Demo Day on November 24th. Ten shortlisted tech founding teams presented their innovative pitches to an esteemed panel of judges.
The official winners were announced the following day, November 25th, during the main AHEAD Africa HealthTech Conference held at the Radisson Blu in Ikeja. The results highlighted exceptional promise in addressing African healthcare challenges:
- First Place: ApexHealthTech
- Second Place: FCMF Group (First Class Muslim Foundation Group)
- Third Place: MedsightAI
- People’s Choice Award: PharmaEco
The top teams received rewards totaling up to ₦10 million. Furthermore, as a dedicated push toward commercial viability, the top seven participants will receive further mentorship to develop their promising HealthTech ideas into sustainable businesses.
The hackathon served as a dynamic launchpad, successfully bridging the gap between digital innovation and real-world implementation. Its results were showcased at the main AHEAD Africa HealthTech Conference, which convened industry leaders to discuss building equitable and efficient health systems. A key takeaway from the conference panels was the critical emphasis on interoperability, exploring how EMR platforms and other digital tools can seamlessly connect to significantly improve the quality of patient care across the continent.