The Bridge Mom App & Period Calendar

Today, Sub Saharan Africa has the highest proportion of young people(10-24 years) in the world at 32%.About 31% of females between the ages of 20 and 24 in the African region were married prior to age 18 and they have the highest adolescent birth rate compared to other regions worldwide.Policies about SRHR services, information and commodities in Africa do not guarantee young people access to sexual and reproductive health and rights because they are not delivered in a friendly way to the targeted age groups predisposing majority of them to unplanned pregnancies, increase in STIs and HIV, and unsafe abortions setting off a cascade of negative socio economic impact.

Young people in Uganda have high rates of unplanned pregnancies due to lack of practical guidance about SRHR and stigma associated with seeking sexuality education which means majority make uninformed decisions despite being sexually active.This is evidenced by data from UNFPA which shows that in 2021 alone, over 32,000 teenage pregnancies were reported monthly in Uganda and nearly 3/5 women(20-49 years) started childbearing while still teenagers.

Imagine the immense health benefits and eventual positive socio-economic impact for the African continent that will be achieved if young African people are provided with accurate, confidential SRHR information, tools and commodities.At Bulamu Bridge AI, we believe that empowering the young people with SRHR information and tools while protecting their privacy is essential to guiding them to achieve their full potential and act as positive social change makers in their communities.

We are a Ugandan technology-based startup that have developed the Bridge Mom app and period calendar- an artificial intelligence powered interactive platform that allows young people to access a wealth of culturally sensitive educational resources including videos, articles, audios on contraceptive use, safe sex practices and other SRHR information allowing them to make informed decisions about their sexuality and therefore avoid unplanned pregnancies. This app has the following features;

1. A period tracker that enables young people to accurately track their menstrual cycles empowering them with information on fertility and safe days.

2.A virtual consultation feature which connects young people with certified professionals with whom they can share information privately about their sexuality and seek contraceptive guidance and receive emotional support ensuring their well-being.

3.This app is integrated with an e-commerce platform that allows young people to order for contraceptives and other SRHR tools discreetly and without judgement. This blend of convenience and privacy ensures that young people can take charge of their reproductive health.

4.A community support platform; where teenagers can share their experiences anonymously, discuss challenges and share solutions to them.

Additionally, we have also developed Lydia; an interactive whatsapp chatbot that provides information about Sexual Rights and Reproductive Health (SRHR) services to young people empowering them to manage their reproductive health.

In a world where where unplanned pregnancies pose a significant concern especially among teenagers, our solutions strive to empower the younger generation with the tools and credible information they need to prevent unplanned pregnancies, STIs and HIV plus unsafe abortions fostering a future of educated choices and improved well-being.

We are targeting the young people residing in the semi-urban areas of Uganda particularly the slum areas of Kampala where majority are at high risk of unplanned pregnancies, STIS and HIV due to limited access to friendly sexual and reproductive health rights and services.

Our solution including a mobile app and whatsapp chatbot; strive to empower these young people with the tools and credible information they need to prevent unplanned pregnancies, STIs and HIV plus unsafe abortions while ensuring their privacy and confidentiality fostering a future of educated choices and improved well-being.

Our team is composed of members who were born and have grown up in similar communities to our beneficiaries and have experienced the challenges  faced by young people in accessing SRHR commodities firsthand. We possess a deep understanding of the communities we serve and are therefore passionate about driving positive change in SRHR delivery to these young people. 

Our solution is not composed from the top-down.We actively seek input and feedback from the young people in the communities we serve through surveys, focus groups and interviews to understand their unique needs, preferences, and concerns to ensure that our solution is meaningful, culturally sensitive, and tailored to their realities.

During our pilot testing, we conduct usability tests with members of our target population to refine our solutions that include the mobile app, WhatsApp chatbot and e-commerce platform to ensure that they are user friendly. We respect and honor our local customs, traditions, and beliefs. Our team's cultural diversity allows us to navigate these sensitivities effectively and incorporate them into our solution's design.

In the future, to ensure that our digital platforms are accessible to a wide range of users, including those with limited digital literacy, we hope to offer content in local languages to bridge language barriers.

Our team is not just a group of experts but individuals deeply embedded in the communities we serve and uniquely positioned to design and deliver our SRHR solution to the young people. We prioritize the young people's input, engagement and  empowerment throughout the design and implementation of our SRHR solution.

Since 2022, we have reached over 5,000 young people with our SRHR information using our digital tools, with over 80% coming from the urban communities of Kampala.We have registered over 1000 purchases of menstrual hygiene products and contraceptives available on our e-commerce platforms and have fostered over 1000 virtual conversations about SRHR between young people and counselors on our mobile app.

Traditional and non digital approaches have always been employed by both government and non governmental organizations in the field of dissemination of SRHR information and services. These approaches have been noted to be highly costly and yet not user friendly for the targeted populations.From our field work in urban slum areas of Kampala, Uganda, many young people  confided in us that they are limited from accessing SRHR services due to fear, stigmatization and lack of privacy and confidentiality hindering them from making informed choices about their reproductive health and well-being. Furthermore, research done on the use of mobile health interventions in East Africa has demonstrated their effectiveness in increasing the access to SRHR information, goods, and services while assuring privacy and confidentiality, and enabling convenience by easing transportation and payment for these services.

The Bridge app allows the young people to receive SRHR information and advice from our expert specialists at the tap of a phone 24/7, allows the young people to discreetly order for contraceptives, and menstrual hygiene products that are delivered to their locations and permits the young girls to learn about safe days and track their menstrual cycles.Our interactive chatbot Lydia utilizes artificial intelligence to provide the young people with information about SRHR, contraceptive use, and STI treatment and diagnosis discreetly guiding them to make informed choices about their well-being from the comfort of their locations without revealing any personal information.

Our goals for the next year include testing the latest version of the Bridge app and WhatsApp chatbot with young women in Kampala, Uganda and integration of an e-commerce platform onto our app with the sole aim of increasing access too SRHR products including emergency contraceptives and therefore combating teenage pregnancies that are highest in this region.

Our 5 year plan is to empower over 1 million young people in East Africa as subscribers equipping them with knowledge about SRHR using our artificial intelligence powered platforms and providing them with services, guiding them to make informed decisions about their reproductive health and well being therefore causing transformation in their communities.

We hope to have partnered with at least 25% of the health care facilities in Uganda and scaled to reach over 50% of the young East African population with SRHR information and services. We hope to establish strategic partnerships and collaborations with government agencies, healthcare providers, NGOs and investors in the healthcare sector particularly SRHR and maternal health to expand our resources and reach, and successfully integrate our solution into the existing health care system. 

Overall, our 5 year plan revolves around expanding our reach among young people and healthcare providers, forging partnerships, fostering continuous innovation and building a sustainable business model using artificial intelligence powered digital health platforms.With these resources, we hope to have increased access to contraceptives among women of reproductive age and reduced the number of teenage pregnancies significantly among young people in East Africa by the end of 2025.

We were founded at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic when the government of Uganda imposed travel restrictions upon all persons. As volunteer doctors in rural Uganda, we realized the need to bring healthcare services closer to women who were dying due to complications of childbirth in their homes due to inability to receive healthcare services. We visited pregnant women in their homes assisted by village healthcare teams offering medical check ups. We realized that majority of the pregnant women were actually young people especially teenagers who were fearing to report to healthcare centers due to fear and stigmatization from peers and the community.We founded Bulamu Bridge AI to use technology to overcome the geographical and psychosocial barriers that these young women were facing in receiving antenatal care. 

Later on, we realized that young women would consult us about their reproductive health even without being pregnant and we developed the Bridge AI app to provide SRHR information and services discreetly to them while protecting their identities. Currently, we have reached over 5,000 young people with SRHR information majority from the urban slum areas of Kampala, Uganda who have reported increased confidence and self esteem with an improved in their well-being and ability to make informed decisions about their reproductive health.We have registered over 1000 purchases of menstrual hygiene products via our platform with many young girls reporting improving in their hygienic practices and 95% increase in school attendances despite being on their periods.We have fostered over 1,000 virtual confidential conversations on sexual and reproductive health between young people and qualified health professionals via our app reducing the information gap on SRHR by 20% among the young people in Kampala.Our solution has been validated by UNFPA Uganda and Outbox as we emerged winners of the UNFPA End Teenage Pregnancy Hacklab, Uganda in September 2023.

Full-time

Dr. Teddy Nalwanji- our co-founder and CEO

Dr. Patrick Sseremba- our co-founder and COO

Jovia Kisakye- our finance lead

Israel M Busharira- our technology lead

Part time

Dr. Hope Atwiine- medical doctor

Dr.Lilian Nabwiire- adolecescent counsellor

We have been working on this solution since January 2021.

At Bulamu Bridge AI,we believe that a diverse team with varied perspectives and backgrounds is crucial for driving innovation and effectively addressing the challenges faced by young people in accessing SRHR services and information in Uganda.Our team is a blend of medical doctors, financial experts and seasoned IT personnel with unique skills to drive company growth and scalability with over 10+ years of combined experience in startup management and entrepreneurship.We actively engage with local communities and organizations in the SRHR space Uganda to better understand the needs of young people and ensure that our solutions are age appropriate, culturally sensitive and inclusive.We implement anonymous feedback mechanisms that allow team members and our beneficiaries to express concerns, share ideas, and report any issues related to diversity, equity, or inclusion in our work.

Our revenue sources include;

1. Sales from SRHR products including contraceptives and menstrual hygiene products on our e-commerce platform.
2. In app advertising
3. Revenue from healthcare services provided through referrals to our partner hospitals providing SRHR services to young people including counseling services, STI treatment and diagnosis, antenatal care.
4. Data sales to research agencies and other organizations that use real time data to improve their products.

Our path to financial sustainability involves establishing a robust e-commerce platform offering a wide range of feminine and baby products including contraceptives, pampers, menstrual hygiene products in collaboration with well known companies in this field.

We also offer professional counseling and healthcare services to young people and pregnant women at a fee through referrals to our partner hospitals in a revenue sharing model.

We are implementing projects funded by grants and therefore forming partnerships with reputable organizations like Outbox, UNFPA in Uganda as additional sources of funding to foster the continuity of our work. In addition, we are participating in pitch competitions and accelerator programs and are currently raising pressed funding in a round led by FasterCapital.