Alta Semper, a private equity manager investing flexible and strategic capital across select African frontier markets, has partnered with Oncologie & Diagnostic du Maroc (ODM), Morocco’s oncology, radiology and diagnostics platform. 

Alta Semper will provide both growth capital and strategic support to allow the Company to increase its footprint across Morocco, as well as expand into select geographies across North and Sub-Saharan Africa. 

Alta Semper will also support ODM in identifying bolt-on acquisitions across the country and expanding its management team and board of directors.

This transaction marks Alta Semper’s third investment in the healthcare space in Africa, and its first investment in Morocco.

Afsane Jetha, Managing Partner & CEO of Alta Semper, said: “We are very excited to embark on our partnership with Mohamed Elmandjra and ODM to expand the business within its high growth markets by enhancing the provision of quality healthcare and improving operations.” 

“We believe ODM is well-positioned to capitalise on the increasing demand for diagnostics, oncology and radiology services across Morocco, as well as to expand regionally into neighbouring countries, through its world-class infrastructure and visionary management team.”

Founded in 2014, ODM is the first and largest private specialised healthcare platform in Morocco, offering services in oncology, medical imaging and diagnostics throughout the main regions of the country. 

The Company offers a variety of cancer treatments including radiotherapy, chemotherapy, brachytherapy, haematology and other oncology services. 

With the largest and most advanced technical platform in the country, it also offers high quality imaging and diagnostics services.

The Company is recognised for the calibre of its medical professionals and their commitment to high quality care, as well as the sophistication of its technology. 

With its first center operating since 1989, it has built a successful track record, with over 200 employees. It has a well-established presence in the main Moroccan cities and sees over 60,000 patients every year through its facilities. 

The centres are acknowledged as the leading service providers in the country, and feature state-of-the-art equipment including Stereotactic Radiosurgery, Radiation therapy, MRIs, CT scanners, Ultrasounds, X-rays, Mammography, PET scanners, Nuclear medicine as well as Bone densitometry.

The Company’s objective is to expand its reach to underserved regions in South and Northeast Morocco to offset the current lack of supply and meet market demand. 

Furthermore, the Company aims to upgrade the provision of care to a level of international quality, expand its product offering,  build a regional network of reference centres and continue to develop scientific partnerships with major global institutions.

The specialty healthcare market in Morocco is characterised by increasing demand, driven by an increase in incidents of chronic diseases and enhanced insurance coverage. 

Similar to many emerging markets, the healthcare sector in Morocco suffers from a lack of adequate infrastructure, underequipped hospitals, inadequate geographic and regional dispersion, as well as a lack of adequate oncology and radiology facilities. 

Furthermore, Morocco has recently changed its laws to accelerate the development of private healthcare. Its forward-thinking government is increasingly acting as a payor vs. provider of chronic healthcare services, allowing private investors in the healthcare market to flourish.

The investment will enable the Company to capitalize on the growing demand for high quality yet affordable healthcare services in Morocco. 

The investment will also allow ODM to continue to attract the leading local human talent as well as move towards assisting the country progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. 

ODM has a strong focus to world-class environmental, health and safety practices to ensure the highest quality of care, which aligns with Alta Semper’s commitment on achieving the SDGs.

Mohamed Elmandjra, Founder & CEO of ODM, said: “We are delighted to have Alta Semper be our lead investor in this next phase of development of ODM. Their expertise in deploying capital in African markets will be key to support our growth in Morocco and beyond and enable us to provide best in class specialized healthcare.”

Alta Semper was advised by regional law firm Matouk Bassiouny.