Nigeria Gets N3.4bn Google Grant For AI-powered Maternal Healthcare

Nigerian health technology company, Helium Health, has secured a $2.5 million (about N3.4 billion) grant from Google.org to deploy artificial intelligence (AI)-powered clinical solutions aimed at improving maternal healthcare delivery in the country.

The funding will support the deployment of AI models across primary healthcare facilities to help identify pregnancy-related risks early, strengthen clinical decision-making and improve access to timely maternal healthcare.

Helium Health was selected as the only Nigerian organisation among 15 global beneficiaries of Google.org’s $30 million Impact Challenge: AI for Government Innovation, an initiative supporting organisations working with governments to improve public service delivery.

The project will cover Lagos, Delta, Kano and Oyo States, with Lagos serving as the operational launchpad for the implementation.

The deployment roadmap was presented in Lagos during an executive briefing involving Google and Helium Health executives and the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

Speaking on the initiative, the Chief Executive Officer of Helium Health, Dimeji Sofowora, said the grant would enable the company to expand its existing maternal health interventions and reach more women with quality healthcare services.

“For the past decade, Helium Health has been building the technology and partnerships needed to improve healthcare delivery across Africa. Through our maternal health initiatives, we’ve already reached over 3.5 million women, and Google.org’s support gives us an opportunity to build on that foundation, scale what works, and reach even more women with quality maternal healthcare,” he said.

The company’s Head of Public Health, Dr Shona Oluwatola, said the intervention was targeting an additional 1.9 million women over three years, with the ambition of contributing to a 30 per cent reduction in maternal mortality.

She noted that Nigeria accounts for nearly three in every 10 maternal deaths globally, stressing the need for early identification of pregnancy complications and improved access to appropriate medical attention.

“Our goal is to reach an additional 1.9 million women over three years and contribute to a 30 per cent reduction in maternal mortality. Ultimately, we want to ensure that no woman loses her life simply because she didn’t know she was at risk or couldn’t access the care she needed,” Oluwatola said.

The intervention, known as HeliumMum, uses AI to help pregnant women identify potential health risks and connect with healthcare providers for appropriate care.

It also integrates electronic medical records and AI-powered clinical decision-support tools to assist healthcare workers in making informed clinical decisions, while providing governments with data to identify gaps and strengthen maternal health services.

Meanwhile, Google.org’s Global Head, Maggie Johnson, said the initiative was designed to bridge the gap between the potential of artificial intelligence and its practical application in public service delivery.

“AI holds incredible potential to transform public services, but there is often a gap between promise and practice,” she said, adding that the selected organisations would receive funding and pro bono technical support from Google engineers and AI product experts through a dedicated accelerator programme.