Inspiration
In Rwanda, I heard a story that broke my heart, a pregnant woman detained in a clinic after delivery because she couldn’t pay her bill. She had no record of her prior visits, and no one could confirm her risk profile or track her history. Her baby was taken away. All because of lost paper files. That’s when I knew: we need a way for pregnant women to carry their health history — even without the internet, even without a smartphone. HayoHealth was born to solve this.
What it does
HayoHealth empowers clinics and midwives to store, access, and update maternal health records using NFC smart cards, completely offline. Each pregnant woman receives a personal NFC smartcard that stores her medical visits, vital signs, and risk alerts. Midwives use a lightweight Android app to write to or read from the card, even with no signal.
How we built it
React Native (Expo) for cross-platform mobile app Expo NFC API for local smartcard reading/writing AsyncStorage for offline record caching Firebase for optional cloud backup/sync TypeScript + Python (for TinyML prototyping) Figma for UX design with midwife feedback
Challenges we ran into
Building NFC logic that works across Android devices with inconsistent readers Designing UX for low-literacy users while maintaining medical accuracy Syncing local data without duplication or loss during poor network conditions Making sure NFC data cannot be overwritten or corrupted easily Access to real-time midwife feedback during field testing
Accomplishments that we're proud of
Completed pilot testing in 3 rural clinics in Rwanda Over 50 midwives have joined our waitlist Invited to pitch at Transforming African MedTech Conference (TAMC) 2025 Featured in ALU’s Innovation Sprint and shortlisted for international grants Our tech was featured in Africa HealthTech builders community
What we learned
Building for constraints is not a limitation, it's an opportunity to innovate with empathy. Tech alone can’t solve everything, co-design with users (midwives, nurses, women) makes the biggest difference. Maternal health challenges are deeply systemic, and portable data is just the beginning.
What's next for HayoHealth
Finish our TinyML risk alert module to detect complications using wearable + phone vitals Distribute 1,000+ smartcards across Rwanda Train 100 more midwives with partner clinics Expand to Kenya, Uganda, and beyond Partner with Ministries of Health to build national-level maternal ID systems Raise our pre-seed to launch fully into production
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