There’s ample evidence that faster care leads to better health outcomes in Africa. Emergency Response Africa (ERA) connects people quickly to life-saving care through a network of trained first responders, emergency vehicles, and verified hospitals, all linked together by their software.

ERA trains community-based responders to become skilled Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) and coordinates a fleet of ambulances and moto-riders for rapid transport. Their dispatch system triages calls, directing the nearest driver to the closest emergency-ready facility. They also track patient outcomes to gather data and improve future responses.

Folake Owodunni, ERA’s co-founder and CEO, was inspired to start the organization after a personal emergency with her son in Canada highlighted the gap between emergency care there and in her home country of Nigeria. With two Master’s degrees and 15 years of experience in healthcare, consulting, and marketing, Folake has earned multiple awards, including the Aurora Tech Award and Google Black Founders Fund.