Organon and Flat6Labs have teamed together to establish the Femtech Accelerator Programme, which aims to help female-founded digital health entrepreneurs in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) flourish by assisting with product development, market testing, and business model improvement.
Organon is a worldwide healthcare firm focused on improving the health of women throughout their lifetimes, founded through a spinoff from Merck, known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada.
Flat6Labs, based in Cairo, was founded in 2011 and is the MENA region’s top seed and early-stage venture capital firm. The two firms have teamed together to develop the Femtech Accelerator Programme, which was announced at the Expo 2020 USA Pavilion, marking Organon’s first foray into the Middle East.
Following a selection procedure, 10 firms will be asked to participate in the two-month intensive programme, where they will get assistance in developing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and attracting venture capital.
Flat6labs will offer technical and business training, as well as access to their local and regional partner networks. Participating entrepreneurs will be connected to local and international firms, as well as have access to large data and new prospects. Meanwhile, Organon will provide mentorship, link participants with global industry experts, and provide them access to their complete business network, including internal teams and external partners.
“As a new regional healthcare entity with a commitment to advancing the health of women in this region, we are very excited to launch this programme supporting female entrepreneurs. We know that investing in women has far-reaching benefits, reaping dividends for families, local and national communities, and economies. We will continue to listen to women’s needs to better understand the gaps and identify the right solutions for a better and healthier every day for her,” said Susanne Fiedler, the chief commercial officer of Organon.
The contemporary startup ecosystem and the healthcare business, according to Dina El-Shenoufy, chief investment officer at Flat6labs, are male-dominated settings.
“If we are to achieve greater gender equity while supporting economic development across MENA, we need to do more to support female entrepreneurs and advance women’s healthcare. Our newly launched femtech accelerator will meet this need and that of greater digital innovation in the healthcare space while demonstrating the importance of cross-industry collaboration to further the goals of female economic empowerment,” she said.
