Blessing Nzuza

Youth in Business

Nominee's Province:
Kwazulu-natal

Age:
30

Project Name/Description:
Respo – Emergency Response App

More info:
https://web.facebook.com/respotech

Witnessing a stab victim almost bleed to death at the Durban beachfront in 2018 because he could not get medical help fast enough motivated Blessing Nzuza, 30, to create a mobile app that rapidly dispatches a private ambulance to anyone in distress, particularly in marginalised communities. The stab victim eventually took an Uber to the hospital. “I had seen this type of thing happen too many times around me and I realised something needed to be done about it,” Nzuza says. The revolutionary app he created is called Respo. It uses features such as GPS tracking, data capturing, user matching and push notification to fast-track the request process and transfer the relevant information to the responder, leading to more lives being saved during medical emergencies. Crucial start-up capital to develop the app came from Sefa and Technology Innovation Agency. “Our target audience is the lower LSM market who cannot afford medical aid, and living in rural and township areas.”