Health Economics and Policy Unit (HEPU)

What Health Economics and Policy Unit (HEPU) does

HEPU is a university research unit within Kamuzu University of Health Sciences (KUHES), based at the College of Medicine Lilongwe Campus in Malawi, established on 29 January 2019. It conducts health economics research, disease and health systems modeling, ethical decision-making framework development, and policy advisory work aimed at the Malawi Ministry of Health and ECSA Health Community stakeholders. The unit's primary deliverables include the Thanzi La Onse/Mawa all-disease computational model (co-developed with Imperial College London, UCL, and University of York) that simulates population demographics, disease risk factors, healthcare encounters, and health outcomes to evaluate health infrastructure and resource allocation; the VEDMAP framework and mobile application for value- and evidence-based decision-making in low-resource settings; a regular Think Tank Conference series; and a Policy Lab that converts research into policy briefs and implementation science. Adjacent offerings include Health Technology Assessment evaluations, Direct Facility Financing and CHAM Service Level Agreement analyses, the PUMA urban mobility research project (with Makerere University and University of Rwanda), and an MSc in Global Health Economics and Policy.

The business model is grant-funded rather than commercial. Revenue flows from research grants and contracts from Wellcome Trust (primary Thanzi La Mawa funder), the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR, PUMA funder), and bilateral donors including the governments of Norway, Germany, and Britain via the Health Services Joint Fund. Pricing is not applicable as services are delivered through research grants and government/partner contracts. GTM is community-led, relying on think tank conferences, policy labs, and collaborative research forums that engage Ministry of Health directors, technical working groups, and regional health stakeholders across the ECSA region to bridge producers and consumers of health economics evidence.

Name

Health Economics and Policy Unit (HEPU)

Legal name

Health Economics and Policy Unit

Website

https://hepu.kuhes.ac.mw

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

HEPU is a research unit at Kamuzu University of Health Sciences in Malawi that conducts health economics research, disease modeling, and policy analysis. It primarily serves the Malawi Ministry of Health, CHAM, and regional ECSA health stakeholders through grants from Wellcome Trust, NIHR, and bilateral donors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Economics Research

akta.pro primary industry

Maternal, Child & Family Health Program Funding (HLAJALAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Results-Based Financing (RBF) & Performance-Based Grants (BPADAOAF)

Headquarters

HQ city

Lilongwe

HQ country

Malawi

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Research Grants and Contracts: HEPU is funded through grants and contracts from government ministries, international research institutions, and development partners including Wellcome Trust, NIHR, and bilateral donors

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

No supporting source data was provided in the input for this field.

Product overview

HEPU is a research unit at Kamuzu University of Health Sciences (KUHeS) comprising multiple interconnected products and services. The core offerings include the Thanzi La Onse/Mawa All-Disease Model (an epidemiological simulation framework), the VEDMAP Decision-Making Framework and mobile application, the Think Tank platform for expert policy advice, the Policy Lab and Digital Policy Lab for evidence-to-policy translation, and various evaluation services (DFF, CHAM SLA, Health Service Joint Fund, Health Financing). Supporting offerings include academic programs (MSc in Global Health Economics & Policy), training courses (Disease Modelling Short Course), and the HTA evaluation service. These components work together to strengthen health economics research, policy analysis, and capacity building in Malawi and the ECSA region.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Imperial College LondoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeep collaboration on the Thanzi La Onse all-disease model development; Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology provides epidemiological modelling expertise
• University College LondoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Thanzi La Onse collaboration for health system modelling research
• University of YorkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDepartment of Politics collaboration on political economy analysis and health policy research
• Makerere UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead partner in PUMA (Politics of Urban Mobility in Africa) project; School of Public Health serves as secretariat with Co-PI Dr. Aloysius Ssennyonjo
• University of RwandacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-PI Dr. David Tumusiime leads Rwanda component of PUMA project on political economy of urban mobility
• Oxford ARCH HubminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Digital Policy Lab development under Oxford's ARCH Hub; aims to create global policy repository and dialogue platform
• Malawi Ministry of HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary government partner for health economics research and policy development; Ministry provides policy guidance and implementation support
• East, Central and Southern Africa (ECSA) Health CommunitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional health community partner in Thanzi La Onse collaboration and health systems research
• MRC/UVRI & LSHTM Uganda Research UnitminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration on epidemiology and disease modelling methodologies
• Overseas Development InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on development economics and health policy research
• Center for Health Economics (CHE)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealth economics expertise and policy lab collaboration

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Overseas Development Institute (ODI): Global development think tank working on health policy, financing, and political economy in LMICs. Listed as a partner of HEPU and a directly comparable think-tank-style organization producing health policy research for governments and donors.
• Africa Health Economics and Policy Association (AfHEA): Continental association dedicated to strengthening health economics and policy capacity in Africa. Comparable as a convening body for African health economics researchers and policymakers, addressing overlapping capacity-building and policy translation mandates.
• Centre for Health Economics (CHE), University of York: University of York's health economics research centre and a named HEPU partner. Comparable as a health economics research group collaborating with LMIC institutions on policy-relevant research and methods development.
• MRC/UVRI & LSHTM Uganda Research Unit: Uganda-based joint research unit with MRC and LSHTM focused on epidemiology and disease modelling. Directly comparable as a named partner of HEPU and as a peer model for embedded disease modelling and ministry-of-health engagement in the region.
• KEMRI Wellcome Trust Research Programme: A long-standing Kenya-based research programme jointly run with the Wellcome Trust focused on health systems, epidemiology, and clinical research in East Africa. Closely comparable as a Wellcome-funded African health research unit working with ministries of health on policy-relevant evidence.

Emerging players

• Results for Development (R4D): Global health organization focused on health systems, financing, and policy in LMICs, often working with ministries of health on similar evaluations to those HEPU performs (financing strategy, value-for-money, DFF-style programmes).

Others

• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation - Global Health Division: Major global health funder financing many of the same types of health economics, modelling, and policy translation activities HEPU pursues. Relevant as a comparable ecosystem player shaping LMIC health research funding flows rather than as a direct competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Imperial College London - Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology: Co-developer of the Thanzi La Onse/Mawa model and a global centre for disease modelling. Comparable as the primary academic co-developer whose epidemiological modelling capability underpins HEPU's flagship model.
• London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM): A global leader in public health and health economics research and training with deep Africa engagement through units such as MRC/UVRI. Comparable as a much larger incumbent producing overlapping health economics and disease modelling evidence for LMIC contexts.
• World Health Organization - Africa Regional Office (WHO AFRO): Sets continental health policy norms and frequently commissions health economics and systems research from LMIC institutions. Comparable as the regional anchor that defines the policy questions HEPU's research is designed to answer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CoMHepu
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@kuheshepu
• Facebookfacebook.com/100057221838710
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kuhes-hepu

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Health Economics and Policy Unit (HEPU)