No one expects to get ill, it just happens. For some reason, they always have the worst possible timing. Maybe you have exhausted or diverted your savings to something urgent, and you’re left sick and stranded for financial help.
This is where crowdfunding comes in.
What is Crowdfunding?
It is a method of raising money from several individuals to support a cause.
Medical crowdfunding is the process of seeking donations from people, in order to fund your medical expenses. It is not a type of loan or capital; and it doesn’t require interest payment or any type of extra payment whatsoever. It is simply donated for you to manage your condition and bounce back to good health.
The principle is based on the knowledge that small drops make an ocean. Let’s assume your goal is to raise 750,000 naira for a surgery. People can send you variable amounts of money, and, with time, the trickles of donation will sum up to your goal.
Why You Should Crowdfund
There are several reasons why it is absolutely normal to consider online fundraising for your medical care, and they include;
-You are not alone. Majority of Nigerians do not have health insurance. About 97% of Nigerians pay for medical care out of their pockets
-People around the world use crowdfunding to cover their medical bills. It is a perfectly normal global practice.
-It is a way to allow your community to assist you with health expenses.
-It empowers you to raise funds from as many people as possible.
-It is similar to traditional fundraising from family and friends. The only difference is the use of the internet, which enables wider reach and donation from caring strangers.
Best Crowdfunding Sites in Nigeria
In this article, we’ll introduce you to the five crowdfunding apps to support your medical expenses. We selected them based on their ease of use, their versatility, their track record of successful fundraising, their level of support for causes on their sites, and so on.
To help you and your loved ones get started on the path of recovery, here are five apps to help you raise money for medical conditions.
- GoFundMe
- NaijaFund
- Donate.ng
- Airfunding
- Helpa
If you have been searching for a Nigerian version of GoFundMe, then Helpa is right for you. In fact, it is the better version of GoFundMe for Nigerians.
Helpa is a digital fundraising app that is improving Nigerians’ access to critical healthcare through fundraising. We are almost exclusively focused on healthcare fundraising because of our goal of reducing morbidity and mortality.
Helpa is more than just a platform, we are personally invested in helping our users meet their goal through our online and offline fundraising channels. Our app enables multi-currency donation, allowing people from anywhere in the world to support you in Nigeria. For perspective, Helpa launched in 2022, and enabled its users to raise over 5 million naira in that same year.
Donors are generally wary of health fundraising campaigns because of the rise in online scam. However, our verification system consists of a tight and robust network of about 1000 healthcare professionals, reducing the incidence of scams to zero.
We make it our responsibility to verify every medical campaign on our website and provide proof for prospective donors. With Helpa, both the fundraisers and donors can seek financial support and donate respectively without any fear of embezzlement.
Also, Helpa has a simple user interface to enable people set up campaigns with little to no assistance and start raising money immediately.
- GoFundMe
GoFundMe is the largest social fundraising website in the world, with over 120 million donations received since its launch in 2010. The platform helps individuals and groups to raise money for various causes, ranging from medical treatment, funeral arrangements, social, business, political to humanitarian affairs.
GoFundMe has a large user base, therefore your campaign has the potential to reach a wider audience than other platforms. On the flip side, because of its size, it may be hard for your healthcare campaign to stand out and attract donors.
In addition, the burden of verification of campaigns lies on the donor which is inconvenient. If people have to carry out extra research to confirm your claim, it might discourage them from donating at all.
Lastly, the app charges a transaction fee of 2.9%. This may be excessive for a Nigerian, as every drop of donation counts for medical treatment.
- NaijaFund
Naija Fund is one of the pioneer Nigeria-focused crowdfunding websites. Launched in 2015, it has assisted several Nigerians to raise funds necessary to kickstart a business or project. It is not specific for medical fundraising, rather it caters to a wide range of causes. Their user-friendly website interface makes it easy to start a campaign and reach your goal without any hassle.
- Donate.ng
Donate.ng is another great online fundraising portal. They believe that no huge or life-changing cause should go unfunded. Although the website is designed for Nigerians, it can accept donations from people all over the world. Their transaction fee ranges between 3.5% and 9% depending on the donation channel and the amount of donation.
- Airfunding
Airfunding is a global crowdfunding platform that has received donations from more than 130,000 people across the world, including Nigeria. Apart from medical causes, it has been used for educational, humanitarian, and business fundraising purposes.
Because of their global audience, the website enables translation of campaigns to up to 17 different languages. Although starting a campaign is free of charge, they charge 5% of the amount raised.
Are you looking for a platform to help you raise money for a medical expense in Nigeria? Try Helpa and start receiving donations seamlessly today.