What Baobab Circle does

Baobab Circle is a Nairobi-headquartered, privately held health technology company founded in 2013 that develops Afya Pap, a patient-centred mobile platform using AI and behavioural science to manage chronic conditions across Africa. The platform targets patients with diabetes and hypertension through four integrated modules: personalised non-drug life coaching, remote health vitals monitoring via connected devices, hassle-free medication ordering with delivery, and on-demand virtual medical consultations. The company operates with a small core team of 1-10 employees and is legally registered as Baobab Circle Limited.

The business model combines direct-to-consumer distribution through the Afya Pap mobile app on iOS and Android with a grassroots Community Health Educators program in Kenya that drives adoption among underserved chronic disease patients. Revenue is generated through transaction fees on medication orders and subscription-style charges for virtual consultations and personalised health coaching, although specific pricing is not publicly disclosed. The company has reported scale metrics of 200,000+ active users, 150,000+ monthly consultations and a 4.5/5 app store rating, with no enterprise anchor customers named, indicating a long-tail consumer base.

Baobab Circle's operating footprint spans Kenya and the broader African region, and it received early-stage funding in 2018 from The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation and Wayra UK. Leadership comprises co-founder and CEO Precious Lunga, co-founder Victor Lunga, and CFO Tazvida Gaza. The company self-describes as a multi-award winning health tech firm, though specific award details, certifications, regulatory milestones, recent funding activity and revenue figures are not disclosed in the available source material, limiting the depth of quantitative assessment.

Name

Baobab Circle

Legal name

Baobab Circle Limited

Website

https://baobabcircle.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Baobab Circle is a Nairobi-based health technology company that develops Afya Pap, a mobile platform using AI and behavioural science to help African patients manage chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension through personalised coaching, remote monitoring, medication delivery and virtual consultations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Health / Chronic Disease Management

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Medication Adherence, Digital Therapeutics & Remote Coaching (condition-specific programs) (HLALAFAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Medical-Grade Device Connectivity & Device Management (MDM) (HLACAFAG), Urgent Care & On-Demand Virtual Visits (HLALAAAB)

Keywords

• Chronic disease management
• Digital health platform
• Mobile health apps
• AI health coaching
• Remote patient monitoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Nairobi

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Medication Ordering and Delivery: Users order essential diabetes and hypertension medication through the Afya Pap app with fast and secure delivery, generating revenue through pharmaceutical transactions
2. Virtual Consultations: On-demand medical consultations booked through the platform, providing immediate healthcare access
3. Health Coaching Services: Personalised life coaching for non-drug therapies to manage chronic conditions

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Baobab Circle operates the Afya Pap mobile platform, a patient-centred digital health application that uses AI and behavioural science to help African users manage chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension. The platform bundles personalised life coaching, remote health vitals monitoring through connected devices, hassle-free medication ordering with delivery, and on-demand virtual medical consultations into a single consumer-facing app.

Product overview

Baobab Circle offers a single unified core product called Afya Pap, a patient-centred digital health platform. The platform uses AI and behavioural science to manage chronic conditions, integrating non-drug therapies through life coaching, remote health vitals monitoring via connected devices, medication ordering for diabetes and hypertension, and virtual medical consultations. The company positions Afya Pap as a comprehensive, all-in-one lifestyle guide for managing diabetes and hypertension.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Afya Pap: Patient-centred health platform using AI and behavioural science to improve management of chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension. Features personalised life coaching, remote health vitals monitoring, medication ordering, and virtual consultations.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100K+ users rating the app 4.5/5 stars
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Community Health Educators ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBaobab Circle partners with community health educators across Kenya to provide grassroots health education and drive adoption of the Afya Pap platform among underserved populations. Community health educators use the platform to support patients with chronic conditions in their local communities.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• mPharma: Africa-focused health tech company that manages pharmacy inventory, supplies medications, and offers patient-facing digital tools across multiple African countries. Highly comparable to Baobab Circle in its African market focus, medication supply economics, and chronic disease patient management.
• MySugr (Roche): Diabetes-focused mobile platform with coaching, logging, and device integration, now owned by Roche. Directly comparable to Baobab Circle's chronic disease management offering for diabetes, with similar coaching and self-monitoring features.
• Omada Health: Digital chronic disease prevention and management platform combining coaching, connected devices, and behavioural science for diabetes and hypertension. Closely aligned with Baobab Circle's model and therapeutic focus.
• DarioHealth: Digital therapeutics company focused on diabetes, hypertension, and musculoskeletal conditions with AI-driven personalization and connected devices. Directly comparable to Baobab Circle in chronic condition management and behavioural science approach.

Regional players

• Helium Health: Africa-focused health tech company offering electronic medical records and hospital management software across West and East Africa. Comparable as a regional African health tech peer targeting providers and patients, though more provider-focused than Baobab Circle's consumer model.
• 54gene: Africa-focused health tech and genomics company with patient engagement and disease management components. Comparable as an African health tech peer, though its core focus is genomics and research rather than chronic care delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Livi (formerly Livongo, Teladoc Health): Chronic condition management program (diabetes, hypertension, weight) using connected devices and coaching, now part of Teladoc. Comparable product model but at vastly larger scale and global reach.
• Babylon Health: Global telehealth and AI symptom assessment platform offering virtual consultations and chronic care tools. Comparable in telehealth/virtual consultation offering, though at much larger scale and broader geographic scope.

Emerging players

• WellDoc: Digital therapeutic platform focused on diabetes and cardiovascular conditions with FDA-cleared software. Comparable in chronic disease focus and AI-driven coaching, but anchored in the US healthcare system.
• Ada Health: AI-powered symptom assessment and care navigation app with global reach including emerging markets. Comparable in the AI-driven personalized health guidance model, though focused on triage rather than ongoing chronic disease management.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Baobab Circle