Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals has unveiled a business-to-business e-commerce platform and supply chain tool aimed at cutting costs and reducing inefficiencies in Nigeria’s healthcare sector, as the company bets on digital transformation to improve access to medicines across Africa.
Launched on the country’s 65th Independence anniversary, the Arrowhead B2B e-commerce platform moves pharmaceutical procurement online, enabling hospitals, pharmacies, and health organizations to browse contract-specific catalogs, monitor real-time inventory, and place secure bulk orders.
The company says digitising these processes will help providers lower administrative costs and focus more on patient care.
“Nigeria’s Independence Day is not only a celebration of our history, but a reminder of our ability to shape the future,” Gerald Damasus, Arrowhead’s co-founder and chief operating officer, said at the launch in Lagos.
“We are building a healthcare system that is independent of inefficiency, fragmentation, and barriers to access.”
Read also: Oyo targets ₦100bn revenue as Makinde’s reforms lift economy, education, health
The company also introduced Scepter360 Pharma, a logistics and data-driven platform designed to improve drug availability. Arrowhead projects it could deliver up to 50% savings in procurement costs while cutting medicine stockouts by 80%, helping health providers avoid shortages that frequently disrupt treatment.
The rollout marks the first phase of the broader Scepter360 Suite, which will eventually integrate patient records, telemedicine, pharmacy inventory, workforce management, and public health reporting.
Unlike conventional systems built for developed markets, Arrowhead says its solutions are tailored to Africa’s realities, including patchy internet connectivity, constrained budgets, and rising demand for care.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, struggles with uneven access to medicines and a fragmented supply chain that drives up costs for hospitals and patients.
Digital health adoption has been slow, but rising investment in e-health platforms suggests growing recognition of their role in addressing systemic gaps.
Arrowhead said its platforms are now open for healthcare providers across the country, with plans to scale regionally as it targets Africa’s $50 billion pharmaceutical market.
