The Origins of Africa Alive

Sometimes, the ideas that change the world aren’t born in a meeting room, but in the midst of chaos. In a rural area of Uganda, with barely any medical coverage, during a moment of fear and uncertainty — that’s how Africa Alive Association began. A project driven by Gonzalo Corria, after experiencing first-hand the fragility of the healthcare system in many of the country’s communities.

At Mática, we knew from the start that we wanted to support this project from its earliest steps. Because we believe in the power of technology — yes — but above all, in the power of people who dare to take action.

During a trip to Uganda, Gonzalo’s partner fell seriously ill. The diagnosis: malaria. What should have been a routine medical visit turned into an ordeal. Healthcare in rural areas was virtually non-existent, and it was only in the capital that they were able to receive proper care.

There, they met a local doctor — highly trained, yet from a region where medical care was nowhere to be found. His dream was to open an accessible clinic in his district. Gonzalo listened and, as he puts it himself, “without euphoria or impulsiveness, but with determination,” he decided to act.

This is how Africa Alive was born — with the aim of providing high-quality, accessible healthcare in rural areas of Uganda. The first step was to choose a location with an urgent need: the village of Katwe, home to 10,000 people and without a single public health centre.

There was a small private clinic in the area, but its prices were so high that most residents couldn’t afford to go. Through dialogue and collaboration, Africa Alive proposed transforming the clinic into a non-profit centre focused on the wellbeing of the community. The owner agreed without hesitation — he too recognised that the current model was unsustainable.

Through fieldwork, countless phone calls and a strong sense of mutual trust, the foundations of the centre were redefined:

• Lowering the cost of all services and, whenever possible, offering care free of charge.
• Expanding essential services such as vaccination, maternal care, diagnostics and dental health.
• Reaching beyond the village, including nearby communities — serving up to 30,000 people.
• Establishing systems for monitoring and transparency, to support better decision-making based on real data.

Since then, more than 5,000 patients have been treated, and four free diagnostic campaigns have taken place — two at the clinic and two in rural areas with very limited access to healthcare — reaching over 1,200 people. In addition, prices have been reduced for eight laboratory tests to encourage early diagnosis of diseases that, in many cases, used to be detected too late.

One of the project’s key pillars is the commitment to early and reliable diagnosis. For diseases like malaria, knowing you have it in time can mean the difference between life and death. That’s why Africa Alive carries out free diagnostic campaigns in nearby villages once a month, using rapid tests for common illnesses.

The local team has been deeply involved in the transformation — from the head doctor to the nurses, including community members who live within the clinic itself. Through ongoing training, tools like Excel, and a strong eagerness to learn, they’ve gone from recording medical histories by hand to starting to analyse their own activity using data. A huge leap that allows for more professional care without losing the human touch.

The clinic currently operates in a rented space that doesn’t always meet optimal conditions. Rain, lack of running water and limited infrastructure make day-to-day work especially challenging. That’s why the main medium-term goal is to build a permanent clinic on a plot of land already donated by a local NGO.

In the meantime, the work continues: walls have been painted, lighting installed, hygiene improved, and a new room dedicated exclusively to diagnostics will soon be ready. Small steps that make a big difference.

Stronger ties with the community are also being built — through talks in churches, visits to the local radio station, and direct contact with district leaders. Because this project doesn’t belong only to those who drive it forward, but to the entire community it serves.

Africa Alive doesn’t just aim to provide medical care — it also seeks to train those who deliver it, listen to the local population, and build a model that can function even without external aid. Volunteering programmes are being planned, especially in training-related areas, and feedback from the community is continuously gathered to tailor services to real needs.

One of the new lines of action involves working with local schools: conversations have already started with several of them to organise regular diagnostic days for children and teenagers — another important step in expanding healthcare impact through prevention.

The immunisation programme remains pending: the process has been particularly slow and, at times, seemed to be cancelled due to international policies that affected funding from USAID. Even so, there is still hope it can be resumed in the near future.

As Gonzalo says, “even if we only sent a microscope, we’d already be helping.” But what’s being done goes far beyond that. A model is being built — one that is replicable, scalable, and deeply human.

For us, supporting Africa Alive is not just a matter of corporate social responsibility. It’s a conscious choice aligned with our values: using technology and data in the service of real change. We help to structure, measure and professionalise from the ground up. But above all, we learn.

We learn that not everything happens instantly, that every step matters, and that when people believe in an idea, the results will come.

Now comes the most beautiful part: watching the clinic grow, strengthening its sustainability, training its team, listening to neighbouring communities, and dreaming — with our feet firmly on the ground — of a network of accessible health centres across Uganda.

At Mática, we’ll continue to stay close, as allies. Because we believe that companies can also be part of the solutions the world needs.