Kenya’s ambulance app, Flare, has raised $150,000 from interested investors.
According to Disrupt Africa who earlier reported some days ago that it raised $100,000, an additional $50,000 has been received increasing overall funds to $150,000.
“I think that should be it for now, but we’ll keep open the round for another 60-90 days with the same terms in case there are one or two more angels we’ve talked to who would be interested to invest,” co-founder Caitlin Dolkart told Disrupt Africa.
Flare is an app that centralizes all of the ambulance providers and their vehicles. It was developed by Capsule Ltd., a company founded by Caitlin Dolkart and Maria Rabinovich. Flare aims to to reduce the waiting time for an ambulance.
“The issue isn’t that there aren’t enough ambulances or that people can’t afford to pay for them,” Caitlin explained. “It’s that there is no coordinated or integrated system. There is no equivalent of 911 [or 999 in the UK].”
The number of ambulances in Nairobi exceeds the World Health Organization’s recommendation of 1 for every 50,000 people by 30. The average cost for a ride, factoring in both Advanced and Basic Life Services levels, is only $55 USD.
Currently, the average ambulance trip time in Nairobi is 2 hours from start to finish. Without Flare, each company’s dispatcher has to call individual drivers to check their location and coordinate pickups. Digitally tracking and mapping the vehicles through Flare will increase their ability to more quickly respond to calls. Additionally, Flare’s use of Google Maps’ real-time traffic information will allow for route optimization, further reducing trip time.
