Generally, Femtech is a term applied to a category of software, diagnostics, products, and services that use technology often to focus on women’s health. This sector includes fertility solutions, period-tracking apps, pregnancy and nursing care, women’s sexual wellness, and reproductive system health care. Femtech was coined in 2016 by Ida Tin, a Danish entrepreneur who founded Clue, a period- and fertility-tracking app.
By Women, For Women
Today, things are changing. In 2021, 231 FemTech deals were struck, up from just 23 a decade earlier, and investment in FemTech applications surpassed $1 billion. In the Middle East and North Africa, the industry’s value is projected to top $3.8 billion by 2031. More than a third of the region’s FemTech firms are located in the United Arabs Emirates.
Best of all, 70 % of FemTech companies have at least on female founder, and venture capitalist firms; such as Portfolia, an investment fund designed by WOMEN for WOMEN, are creating more opportunities. Even celebrities are supporting these trends.
Still, while the market is maturing, the road to parity remains rocky. Despite the global need for female-oriented health technologies, overcoming venture capitalists’ preference for male-dominated tech is a constant struggle.
The femtech innovation void
So far, femtech has focused most of its resources on reproductive health, which constitutes 51 percent of the industry. But other healthcare areas, particularly menstrual health, are ripe for development.
Most women get a period, and menstrual and feminine hygiene is a $43 billion market. Why, then, has the industry failed to improve or invest in products that actually cater to women’s comfort?
Femtech companies have begun to fill this innovation void. One of the most intriguing is Flex, a body-safe alternative to tampons. Another is Thinx, an underwear that observes your period.
Closing the gender gap
Yet the need is far greater than the current output. About 80 percent of women worldwide experience period pain, and on average a woman spends 10 years on her period during her lifetime. That is a lot of discomfort that femtech has not even started to address.
In 2015, British tennis player Heather Watson attributed her poor play at the Australian Open to her period. Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui echoed the same at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Closing this gap will require significant work. Femtech companies, which are changing how we view women’s healthcare, can lead these efforts. It is time for women to make the executive decisions about women’s bodies.
Source: Jordan News
