Scaling Women-Led Innovation: POWER Tanzania’s New Generation of SRHR Entrepreneurs

Accelerators often focus on tech or general business. POWER Tanzania is unique: it is one of the first accelerators dedicated to women-led start-ups in sexual and reproductive health, directly addressing Tanzania’s Development Vision 2025 and the needs of its youngest population ever.

The POWER Model in Tanzania
Launched by DSW Tanzania in Arusha in 2024, the model joins DSW’s POWER accelerator network in East Africa, advancing the approach with a focus on real, investable businesses. Twelve women (21–30) were selected through our Youth Empowerment Centers and networks. Over six months, they received entrepreneurship training, mentorship, and investor-readiness coaching, while building enterprises that integrate SRHR into sustainable business models.

What makes it unique:

• Scalable enterprises, not projects: Each business combines financial sustainability with measurable SRH impact.
• Digital-first approaches: From telehealth platforms to hybrid e-commerce and social media strategies, POWER entrepreneurs are reaching young people where they already are.
• Multi-sectoral partnerships: Ministries, banks, NGOs, and private investors pledged support at Demo Day, creating real financing pathways.
• Sustainable cycle: Alumni become mentors, new cohorts are trained, and businesses are linked into DSW’s youth networks – a system designed to grow.

Demo Day in Dar es Salaam (19 Sept. 2025):
50+ stakeholders gathered to see the first cohort pitch their businesses. Highlights included:

• Telehealth SRH platform – digital consultations and access to products overcoming barriers of distance and stigma.
• Reen Wellness Hub (Irene) – blending in-person and online wellness services for menstruation, pregnancy, and postpartum care.
• Faustina’s maternal health venture – innovative models for maternal and newborn health.
• Huda’s SRH business – bridging clinical services with community entrepreneurship.

POWER TZ is more than an accelerator. It is building a new market sector in Tanzania, featuring women-led, digital-savvy, health-focused enterprises. These businesses are proving that economic empowerment and health outcomes can grow together, creating jobs, reducing gender inequality, and reshaping access to reproductive health.

Have a question about POWER or would like a chat? Reach out to us!

Shane O’Halloran, Head of DSW’s Digital Transformation and Business Development Unit
ohalloran@dsw.org