Microsoft has partnered with Kenyan health-tech startup Zendawa to roll out an AI-powered platform to help independent pharmacies across the country to improve efficiency, reduce medicine wastage and grow revenues.
The solution is built on Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365 Copilot and Power BI. It enables small and medium-sized pharmacies to digitise inventory management, access real-time business insights and make data-driven decisions. These decisions were previously difficult to achieve with manual systems.
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Zendawa’s AI-driven platform replaces manual inventory tracking with predictive analytics, automated reporting, and demand forecasting. This allows pharmacists to optimise stock levels, reduce losses from expired medicines, and keep popular drugs consistently available.
“Small pharmacies are essential to healthcare access in Kenya, yet many struggle with operational inefficiencies and limited access to business intelligence,” said Wilfred Chege, Co-Founder and CEO of Zendawa. “By leveraging Microsoft’s AI technologies, we are giving pharmacists tools that help them reduce losses, grow revenue, and operate more sustainably.”
According to Zendawa, pharmacies using the platform have reported significant reductions in expired stock, improved visibility into fast-moving medicines, and increased daily sales. Automated stock-taking has also reduced the need for pharmacies to temporarily close during inventory checks. This allows them to stay open longer and serve more customers.
One such user is Ryche Pharmacy, where the impact has been tangible.
“Expired stock used to cost us thousands of shillings every month,” said Dr. Bramwel Othieno, a pharmacist at Ryche Pharmacy. “With the AI insights, we can now track expiry dates, predict demand, and focus more on patient care instead of manual record-keeping.”
The platform also enables pharmacies to build data-backed credit profiles. This helps them access financing from lending partners without relying on traditional collateral. Access to working capital has long been a challenge for small healthcare businesses in Kenya.
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