Touch Inc.

Touch Health (formerly Touch Foundation, Inc.) operates as a hybrid operating NGO and strategic partnership hub rather than a conventional grantmaking foundation. Founded in 2004 by Lowell Bryan, a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company, the organization applies private-sector management science and innovation frameworks to health systems challenges in sub-Saharan Africa, primarily Tanzania. Their approach is characterized by data-driven design, government co-ownership, and a strong emphasis on sustainability and replicability at national scale.

Touch structures its work across three programmatic pillars: Healthcare Workforce Development, Patient Access Innovations, and Hospital Excellence. Each pillar employs technology-enabled interventions with measurable population health outcomes. The organization is not primarily a grantmaker to external organizations—instead, it pools funding from institutional partners (Gates Foundation, Vodafone Foundation, ELMA Foundation, USAID, Grand Challenges Canada, Sanofi, Vitol Foundation) and directly implements programs in partnership with African governments.

For organizations seeking resources from Touch or collaboration with their network, the pathway is alignment with an active program: watotoCare (newborn retention), m-mama (emergency maternal transportation), POA (workforce planning), SimuConsult (telehealth), or the hospital operations ROOT model. Partnership inquiries should be directed to info@touchhealth.org with a clear articulation of how the proposed work intersects with government health systems and one of these program areas.

Touch Inc. operates with a modest U.S. nonprofit balance sheet—assets of approximately $1.07 million and annual revenues ranging from $4,831 (2022) to $262,458 (2021) in recent IRS filings—reflecting that the bulk of program funding flows through separate country-level and program-specific structures. The San Francisco/New York-registered entity (EIN: 80-0033509) functions primarily as a fiscal and administrative vehicle; its 990 data does not capture the full scale of Touch's programmatic activity.

The organization does not report outbound grants on its 990 (totgrnts = $0 across all filing years), confirming that Touch is an implementing organization, not a grantmaker. Its capital comes primarily from multi-year institutional commitments. Key funders include the Vodafone Foundation (10+ year relationship), the Gates Foundation (GAINS/NCD program), ELMA Foundation (watotoCare), the Vitol Foundation (hospital access), FID (Fund for Innovation in Development), and historically USAID (2007–2024). McKinsey & Company provides in-kind strategy support.

Recent financials: FY2023 revenue $108,877 / expenses $51,762 / assets $1,012,991. FY2022 revenue $4,831 / expenses $51,415. FY2021 revenue $262,458 / expenses $91,276. The revenue volatility reflects grant receipt timing rather than operational instability.

Touch Health occupies a distinctive niche among global health organizations operating in sub-Saharan Africa, combining implementation at government scale with private-sector management discipline.

Touch differentiates itself from both large-scale delivery organizations and small community-based groups through its McKinsey-rooted management consulting lens. Its tools (POA workforce planning, ROOT hospital operations) are designed for replication and government adoption, not dependency on Touch's continued presence.

Between 2024 and early 2026, Touch Health demonstrated significant program expansion and milestone achievement:

m-mama expanded to Kenya (2024): Building on national-scale success in Tanzania and Lesotho, m-mama launched in Kenya through a coalition of Vodafone Foundation, the Kenyan Government, USAID, Safaricom, and the M-Pesa Foundation. The system has now transported more than 60,000 pregnant women in emergency situations across three countries.

watotoCare pilot results (2024–2025): Partnering with ELMA Foundation and FID, the watotoCare program at Sengerema Hospital reported a 240% increase in newborns retained in the healthcare system. The pilot targets 5,000 newborns between July 2024 and December 2025.

GAINS NCD program: Supported by the Gates Foundation, Sanofi, and Lilly, GAINS connects rural NCD patients to primary care via community health workers in Tanzania—representing Touch's expansion beyond its original maternal/newborn/HRH focus areas.

MediFIKIA: A Sanofi-supported supply chain and patient-tracking initiative now operating across 28 hospitals in Tanzania's Lake Zone, addressing non-communicable disease care barriers.

Audited financial statements through FY2024 are published publicly on the Touch website, demonstrating transparent financial governance for institutional funder due diligence.

Touch Health is not a conventional foundation that issues open RFPs or accepts unsolicited grant proposals. The organization raises funds from major institutional donors to implement its own programs in partnership with African governments. For organizations seeking to engage with Touch's ecosystem, the following pathways are most viable:

1. Government health system alignment: Touch works almost exclusively within formal government structures (Ministries of Health, national scale programs). Organizations with existing relationships with the Tanzanian, Kenyan, or Lesotho MoH have the strongest basis for partnership conversations.

2. Technology and innovation partners: Touch actively seeks digital health, telehealth, and logistics technology partners for programs like SimuConsult and watotoCare. Demonstrated deployment in low-resource settings is essential.

3. Corporate and foundation co-funding: If your organization is a foundation or CSR program considering global health investments, Touch serves as an implementation partner rather than a grant recipient. Their track record with Gates, Vodafone, and Sanofi demonstrates due diligence readiness.

4. Research and academic partnerships: Touch collaborates with research institutions for program evaluation. Organizations with MEL (monitoring, evaluation, and learning) capacity relevant to HRH or maternal health may find alignment.

5. Contact: info@touchhealth.org | U.S. Office: 18 West 18th Street, New York, NY 10011 | Tanzania Office: Mwanza. Do not submit unsolicited grant applications—engage through program alignment conversations first.