In Africa, most workers have no access to social security coverage since they work in the informal sector. In Tunisia, an entrepreneur has decided to help rural women access that service.

Ahmini is a digital platform developed by a Tunisian startup founded in 2019. It facilitates rural women’s integration into the social security system. The startup, which developed the platform, is the result of its founder, Meher Khelifi’s personal experience.  

According to Meher, in rural regions, women usually work on their husbands’ farms without leaves or rest days. Their difficult working conditions damage their health but, they are usually unable to access quality healthcare due to limited financial resources, he explains. “I don't want anybody to live my experience: see someone very close to me die and not be able to do anything,” he said.

To reach a larger number of rural women, Ahmini and hundreds of trained volunteers met with the women and explained the advantages of subscribing to social security coverage. "There were no laws providing social or health coverage to rural women. Also, municipalities were not that much supportive, but I managed to prompt an amendment of the laws and the introduction of new ones covering rural women’s insurance,” he added. 

Ahmini links social security numbers to the insured women’s SIM cards, facilitating access to affordable insurance. It also offers the possibility to sponsor women in various regions in Tunisia. Currently, it claims over 15,000 women registered, including 8,360 that were sponsored. It plans to expand throughout the Arab world, starting with  Algeria and Lebanon.

Adoni Conrad Quenum