After a surge in uptake during the Covid-19 pandemic, the telehealth industry is courting new investment to further innovation and increase access to care in emerging markets. Digital health companies raised a record $57.2bn in global venture capital funding in 2021, a 79% jump from the $32bn raised in 2020, with 30% of the total directed towards telehealth. An estimated $140bn in private sector finance will be needed annually between 2015 and 2030 to realise the UN’s health-related Sustainable Development Goals, according to the UN Conference on Trade and Development, underscoring the importance of boosting spending commitments in the global health technology (health-tech) space.
Telehealth Solutions
As health-tech matures, digital health tools offer a standout opportunity to expand access to care, improve patient outcomes and cut costs in emerging markets. In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, some countries have as few as 0.23 doctors per 10,000 people – compared to 84.2 in some of the most developed countries – according to the World Health Organisation. Investment in lowcost, high-impact fields such as telehealth could help to bridge this gap, however, with Africa’s health-tech market on course to reach $11bn during 2025.
In Ghana, the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service set up teleconsultation services as early as 2016 with the Swiss Novartis Foundation, and in October 2021 a local health-tech start-up, mPharma, announced plans to construct 100 virtual health centres in seven African markets. Backed by Silicon Valley-based Breyer Capital, the start-up raised over $50m between its founding in 2013 and 2021. Highlighting its potential, mPharma’s partnership in September 2021 with Gabon’s strategic investment fund, which is geared towards building drug supply infrastructure, saved the country 30% in procurement costs in one year.
Many countries are leveraging tools such as 5G, artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet of things to improve patient outcomes, reduce medical staff burnout, and lower health care and operating costs. To take one example, internet connectivity plays a fundamental role in India’s health-tech expansion. AI-powered predictive analytics are enabling the early detection of diabetes and cancer in the country. These technologies could be integrated with portable screening devices to provide early testing for underserved rural areas, where 70% of the country’s population lives. The country’s health care sector was estimated to value around $372bn in 2023, and the integration of data and AI in the delivery of health care could add an estimated $25bn-30bn to GDP by the end of 2025.
The Future Of Health
The UAE has been at the forefront of telehealth innovation, spurred by the disruption of Covid-19 to regular patient care. Shortly after the declaration of the pandemic in 2020, Abu Dhabi’s Department of Health launched the Remote Healthcare app for smartphone users to access preliminary medical diagnostics services, health information and guidelines. In March 2023 the UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention issued legislation requiring all medical facilities to provide at least one of the following services remotely: medicine prescriptions, vital signs monitoring, robotic surgery or medical consultations.
Within Ajman, telemedicine services are offered by the majority of large providers – some of whom have specified divisions for these services – as the emirate works to revolutionise medical care. The Department of Digital Ajman’s portal, the Ajman One app, offers information and real-time data on private and public health care services, as well as a database of medical facilities. Such platforms help to enhance access to information and improve medical care, while also raising efficiency.
The ongoing expansion of remote medical services and other digital health tools could generate new business opportunities in the technology sector. Indeed, investing in digital infrastructure could help emerging markets to unlock the wide-ranging benefits of teleheath, among other digital assets, in the coming years.
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