Merck accelerator to invest in Nairobi’s healthcare startups

Merck accelerator is an Angel investor company focusing on the field of health, any company looking a big bang in their idea can pitch up.  Merck has opened applications for the next round of its accelerator programs in Darmstadt, Germany, and Nairobi, Kenya and seeking startups with a digital approach in the fields of healthcare, life science and performance materials.

In addition to that, Merck has doubled the amount it is providing the start-ups in the Nairobi accelerator program. Instead of US$ 15,000, the three selected start-ups will now receive up to US$ 30,000 in financial assistance.

Michael Gamber, Head of the Merck Innovation Center said ,

[quotes quotes_style=”bquotes” quotes_pos=”center”]Due to the dynamic nature of the digital health market in Nairobi, we decided to invest more in the start-ups here and to link them up to the  global community. We also recognize that many start-ups here on the African continent need financial support of a certain level in order to give them the opportunity to push their ideas forward.[/quotes]

During this intake, the Nairobi program is implementing some new changes. Merck has raised its investments from US$ 15,000 to up to US$ 30,000 and will house them at, Metta Nairobi. The teams can also extend their acceleration period via a month-long residence in Silicon Valley.

The programs in both Darmstadt and Nairobi will start on March 6, 2017, and will end on May 24, 2017. The application period will run from October 17 through December 19, 2016, via the accelerator website.

The article was first posted in the Techmoran