Company

SOSO CARE provides micro-health insurance through waste plastic recycling.

Problem

Nigeria generates more than 34 million tonnes of waste annually, including 20 billion plastic bottles, but less than 10% is collected, sorted and recycled. At the same time, pervasive poverty and poor healthcare financing (less than 3% of Nigeria’s 200 million people have health insurance), have put quality health care out of reach for most Nigerians.

Solution

A GSMA grant enabled SOSO Care to expand their current offering by purchasing recyclable waste from low-income individuals and selling it to intermediaries and recycling companies. Proceeds are used to provide health insurance premiums for households that register for the scheme. The GSMA funding aimed to increase automation across SOSO CARE’s systems by introducing digital and mobile apps. In March 2022, SOSO CARE streamlined their processing to enable more waste to be collected and to increase the value generated from waste collection.

Impact

Since partnering with the GSMA, SOSO CARE has:
– Onboarded 3,178 waste collectors to their platform, 86% of whom are female.
– Supported 1,811 of these waste collectors to access health insurance.
– Recycled 97,304 tonnes of plastic and onboarded 81 business-to-business (B2B) clients.

A message from the founder

“This opportunity enables us to improve our product and position in the market. One of our limitations has been around marketing and this project can help strengthen this. In the past six months we have seen significant growth in our users, doubled our revenue, and recovered over 50 tonnes of plastics.”
– Chinonso Opurum, Co-founder and CEO

Founder and Co-founder

Chinonso Opurum – Founder

Veronica Agana – Co-founder

Team | 1-10 employees