Dr. Kieva Chris-Amusan is the co-founder and CEO of Fertitude, a digital platform that provides women with on-demand and stigma-free access to fertility & reproductive health products and services.
Despite her background as a medical doctor, growing up in a family of successful entrepreneurs inspired her to venture into business. She is renowned for her success with Zavandi, one of the leading wedding jewelry brands in Nigeria.
Over the last decade, she has built her career as a digital marketing professional with over 8 years of experience across the e-commerce, fintech, gaming and health sectors. She led the marketing division at SheLeadsAfrica, a community of approx. 1 million black women as VP of Growth Marketing. She also led marketing efforts at Venturing Women, a German incubator of female startup founders across the EMEA region.
As a seasoned entrepreneur & two-time founder, Dr. Kieva has gone through the idea-to-startup process many times, and with Fertitude, she envisions a world where no woman feels isolated or ashamed in their reproductive journey, and can access holistic support on demand.
As International Women’s Month puts female empowerment in the spotlight, we spoke with Dr. Kieva Chris-Amusan about medical innovation, entrepreneurial resilience, and how she isn’t just building another health tech platform (Fertitude), but orchestrating a cultural shift in how women access and experience fertility care.
Your career path has taken some fascinating turns – from medicine to entrepreneurship to digital marketing, before founding Fertitude. Could you walk us through the key moments or experiences that sparked your mission to transform women’s reproductive health?
During my medical training, I saw how much women struggled—not just with access to care, but with getting answers. The average doctor in Nigeria is overworked and there’s only so much empathy and detailed explanation you can expect to get during hospital visits. So many women tend to feel dismissed, and are left to figure some things out on their own.
Funny enough, my favorite rotations at the time were OB-GYN and Psychiatry, but at the time, I didn’t think much of it.
Fast forward to 2023, my own health journey forced me to notice what was happening around me—friends dealing with hormonal issues, fertility struggles, postpartum changes, even mental health. Then one day, I saw a celebrity post about her rough health journey, and the comments were flooded with “Me too,” “Nobody told me this.” That was it. Women weren’t talking, and because of that, they weren’t prepared. It dawned on me that the biggest difference between me and those other women? Knowledge. My medical background made me feel less anxious even when I had worrisome symptoms.
At the same time, I was on a break from my marketing agency, burnt out and figuring out my next step. But this? This was a problem I knew I could help solve.
Knowing what’s happening in your body gives you control and leads to making timely informed decisions and ultimately, better health outcomes. That’s why I built Fertitude—not just to educate, but to help women actually take charge of their reproductive health.
Looking back, my journey wasn’t linear, but it all added up. Every skill I picked up—medicine, marketing, tech—made me the perfect person to build this.
With your experience across multiple sectors, what opportunities do you see for innovation in women’s health that entrepreneurs and investors might be overlooking?
One major gap? Affordable, timely access to care. People talk a lot about ‘accessibility,’ but what’s the point of awareness if women still struggle to get the care they need when they need it?
At Fertitude, we’ve tackled a part of this by making it easier and more affordable for women to chat with a doctor. For as little as N2,000 (~$1), a woman can get answers directly from a qualified health professional or even consult a gynecologist—without long hospital wait times. But beyond this first step, financial barriers still exist. Many women delay critical tests, treatments, or medications because they simply don’t have the money upfront. Imagine not having to choose between paying rent and getting fertility meds or a fibroid surgery.
This is something I’ve been thinking deeply about, and next quarter, we’re exploring partnerships with hospitals and financial institutions to help women in our community access care without impossible trade-offs. We’re calling this initiative, Mula Health, and I’m excited to see how it evolves.
How does Fertitude address the stigma surrounding fertility and reproductive health issues?
Stigma exists because people aren’t talking, and it continues to thrive in silence. So, we make sure these conversations are loud and impossible to ignore.
- We talk about the things people shy away from. Whether it’s PCOS, fibroids, or struggling to conceive, we create content that brings these topics into the open.
- We connect women to real experts. Sometimes, what a woman needs isn’t just information, but a conversation with a trusted medical professional. With Fertitude, she can speak to a doctor or gynecologist, privately and conveniently.
- We’ve built a safe space. Our app includes a forum where women can share experiences, ask questions, and find support from a community that understands. Whether they’re navigating fertility struggles, sexual or hormonal health concerns, they don’t have to do it alone.
- We collaborate with voices that matter. Whether it’s health experts, influencers, or real women sharing their journeys, we make sure these stories are heard—because when one woman speaks up, another realizes she’s not alone.
- We reach women early. Through our campus ambassador program, we’re ensuring younger women gain the knowledge they need early on, breaking cycles of misinformation.
Our goal is to shift the cultural narrative—because reproductive health isn’t just a ‘women’s issue,’ it’s a societal one.
Digital platforms are increasingly shaping how we approach healthcare. What role do you see technology playing in making reproductive healthcare more accessible?
Before now, a woman had to jump multiple hurdles—stigma, long wait times, cost—just to get basic answers about her health. Now? She can get guidance instantly, right from her phone.
At Fertitude, we use AI-powered tools like Kiki AI to help women understand their symptoms, ask questions, and get medically sound guidance in real time. And when they need more, we bridge the gap by connecting them directly to doctors—so they don’t have to rely on Google and guesswork.
But beyond convenience, tech makes healthcare personal. Instead of generic, one-size-fits-all advice, we use machine learning to understand a woman’s unique body and history—helping her make better decisions, faster.
One exciting area we’re exploring is cycle tracking. We’re currently beta-testing a period tracker to help women better understand their reproductive health, with plans to roll it out fully in the coming quarter. Our goal is to move beyond simple tracking and provide deeper insights that help women make informed health decisions.
The biggest shift? We’re moving from reactive care to proactive support. Women shouldn’t have to wait until something is wrong to seek help. With the right digital tools, we can catch issues early, provide education before misinformation spreads, and offer real-time medical access—especially in underserved regions.
That’s the future of reproductive healthcare. And we’re building it now.
What do you wish someone had told you when you were launching your first venture?
That nobody has it all figured out. When you’re just starting, it feels like everyone else knows some ‘secret formula’ for success. They don’t. We’re all figuring it out as we go.
I also wish someone had told me that fundraising from VCs is not necessarily validation. Just because investors say no doesn’t mean your idea isn’t valuable. The real test is: Are you solving a problem that people care about enough to be a viable business? If yes, keep going.
Throughout your journey as a founder, which women have most inspired your approach to leadership?
Honestly? The everyday women who show up and build against the odds. Some are well-known figures whose stories have inspired me from afar, but many are women I’ve had the privilege of learning from up close.
First, my mom (and dad)—who raised me to see the world, not through the limits of gender, but through the lens of merit and hard work. I never once felt disadvantaged as a girl—if anything, I believed I could do anything. That mindset has been a privilege I’m deeply grateful for.
Globally, seeing women like Oprah, Sara Blakely, and Melanie Perkins excel reinforced the subconscious belief that I could be next.
Closer to home, Mrs. Ibukun Awosika and Tara Durotoye have been huge inspirations. Tara’s story—starting a makeup business at 19 while still in university—stuck with me. And Mrs. Awosika’s book, The Girl Entrepreneurs, which shares the journeys of female business leaders, helped shape my perspective on what’s possible.
Then there’s one of my fave business leaders, Joycee Awosika, who’s on a mission to democratize wellness in Africa through ORÍKÌ. Beyond her vision, I deeply admire how she prioritizes systems and structure to enable scale—something every serious entrepreneur must master.
I’ve been inspired by women who built from scratch, broke into male-dominated industries, and created opportunities for others. That’s the kind of leadership I aspire to.
As a two-time founder, what advice would you give to aspiring female entrepreneurs who are just starting their own ventures?
Bet on yourself, even before the world does. If you’re waiting for permission, you’ll never start. Start lean! You don’t need a million dollars to launch. Test the minimum viable version of your idea, gather feedback, and iterate.
Also, don’t build in isolation—your network, community, and mentors will open doors money can’t.
And lastly, stay in the game. Most people don’t fail because their ideas are bad. They fail because they give up too soon.
In the spirit of Women’s Day, which emphasizes collective action, how do you collaborate with other women-led companies in the healthtech space?
I believe collective action isn’t just about partnering with women-led companies—it’s about working with anyone committed to improving women’s health. Achieving gender equality will take all of us, and sometimes that means banding together with male allies to push the cause forward.
That said, we actively collaborate with women-centered communities and businesses, especially in reproductive health—and we’re doubling down on that this year.
So far, we’ve:
- Co-hosted conversations and webinars to share knowledge and resources.
- Partnered with diagnostic labs and wellness brands to bring better solutions to our users.
And we’re just getting started. There’s so much more we can do when we come together.
Looking at the bigger picture, what fundamental changes do you believe are necessary in both healthcare systems and entrepreneurial ecosystems to better foster women’s health innovations?
In healthcare: We need to stop treating women’s health as an afterthought or a niche problem. We are literally half the world’s population!
Too many women’s health concerns are either dismissed or misdiagnosed. We need more research, better training for healthcare providers, and systems that don’t make women feel like they’re ‘imagining’ their pain. Research, funding, and policy also need to reflect the unique needs of women beyond pregnancy/maternal care.
In entrepreneurship: More funding for women-led startups, particularly in healthtech. Period. Women’s health is an $800 billion market, yet it’s grossly underfunded. We need investors who see the opportunity and founders who keep building despite the odds.
What does ‘Accelerate Action’ mean to you?
To me, ‘Accelerate Action’ means moving beyond ideas and taking bold, decisive steps—especially when solving urgent problems like gender inequality. In my journey building Fertitude, I’ve learned that waiting for the ‘perfect time’ is a luxury women’s health can’t afford. The faster we move, test, and refine, the sooner we create real impact.
But real acceleration doesn’t happen in isolation—it happens when we move together. History has shown us that movements drive change faster than individuals ever could.
This is why we launched the ‘Me & My Girls’ Campaign in celebration of International Women’s Month, collaborating with powerful voices such as BamBam of BigBrotherNaija, Tosin Ajibade of OloriSuperGal and others to push reproductive health conversations into spaces they’ve never been before.
We don’t have time to slow down. If we keep moving at the current pace, we won’t meet the SDG 2030 targets for gender equality. And so we need more partnerships with strong female voices and male allies, more amplification by government, educational and religious institutions —because women’s health can’t wait.
Finally, in one word, what’s your entrepreneurial superpower?
Drive.
| Connect with Dr. Kieva Chris-Amusan | |
| Website: www.fertitude.co Fertitude App: bit.ly/fertitude-app | |
| Social media handles | |
| Dr. Kieva – Instagram: @DrKieva – LinkedIn: Kieva Chris Amusan – Twitter: Dr Kieva – Tiktok: Dr Kieva – Facebook: Kieva Chris Amusan | Fertitude – Instagram: @fertitude – LinkedIn: Fertitude – Twitter: Fertitude – Tiktok: Fertitude – Facebook: Fertitude |
