DR. L. DESIRE KIKOMBA
Group Chairman and CEO OF BUPHE r L. Desire Kikomba was until
my partners and I began thinking of ways to
recently a non-executive director
help.”
Edenvale as it centrally placed between the
of the insurance giant, Resolution
The company is strategically located in
business hub of Sandton, Pretoria and the
Insurance. He is currently a
Top business speakers always say that
airport. Soon after registration, they partnered
director of Genric Insurance and is the founder
the best enterprises are built around creating
with Resolution Insurance who underwrote
and group chairman of the pan African
change and serving peoples’ needs. Dr.
their services and established a similar entity
insurance company Buphe. The Expatriate SA
Kikomba says that he noted that a number of
in DRC. This was the first country that they
magazine had the opportunity to interview Dr.
patients struggled with medical bills as they
ventured into on the way to setting up offices
Kikomba at the company’s offices in Edenvale,
had no medical insurance and had to rely
in Zambia, India, Congo, Mozambique and
Johannesburg.
on their savings which were frequently not
Mauritius. It is an international group with a
sufficient.
mission of extending a helping hand to the
“I moved to SA in 1990 soon after
African market as Dr Kikomba believes in the
graduating at the University of Kinshasa with
“In addition, in African culture, we are
saying that “a person who has forgotten where
a medical degree,” he recalled with a very
accustomed to taking care of members of our
he comes from, surely does not know where
distant French accent.
extended family. A good number of people
he is heading to”.
from other countries here often have to send
He continued to explain that the move
money to their home countries to assist with
was initiated by the need to pursue post-
medical bills for their family members. We
Buphe International Limited PCC, a holding
graduate studies and to find an advanced
have devised a universal medical insurance
company which is registered in Mauritius and
environment to practice medicine. On arrival,
that provides cover for a family of five for as
a licensed financial services provider with the
he got a position as a general practitioner
little as USD 1,500.00 a year.”
local Financial Services Commission. We set
at Boksburg Benoni Hospital (now O. R.
“Our organisational structure begins with
up this company following our move from
Tambo Memorial Hospital). He worked in the
Buphe was registered as a private
Resolution Insurance to Guardrisk (a wholly
obstetrics and gynaecology department and
company in South Africa in 2004 and was
owned subsidiary of Alexander Forbes) who
later served in a management position at the
subsequently listed as a financial services
are our underwriters today. Buphe in Mauritius
hospital until 2005 when he moved to the
provider with the Financial Services Board
holds a captive cell with Guardrisk International
Edenvale General Hospital. In the same year
(FSB). They invested heavily in information
PCC. Below the holding company, Buphe has
he completed an MBA from The University
technology (I.T.) establishing a platform that
what it calls management structures, which
of Luton and went on to pursue a diploma in
is unique to the company called BUMAS
are the locations where most of our members
public health at The University of Pretoria.
(Buphe Medical Administration System).
seek treatment being South Africa, Morocco
and India. The distribution of the management
“Buphe is an acronym for Business in
“We decided to set up our own customised
structure is intended to cover the three
Public Health. The idea to start the company
system rather than purchasing what is in the
African regions as follows: Morocco to cover
came from the number of people who visited
market given that the needs of our members
West Africa, India to cover East Africa and
SA from other African countries for treatment.
are very unique. For example, we needed a
South Africa to cover Central and Southern
I was seeing five to six people from the
system that could handle multiple currencies
Africa. Finally, our operational structures are
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) each
and multiple languages. It is a support system
in Zambia, Mozambique, Republic of Congo
month. I believed the situation was similar for
that is integrated to speak to the online
and DRC where most of our members seeking
other African Countries also. That gave me the
inputs from our members such as insurance
treatment hail from.”
impression that there is a significant amount
claims. An effective I.T. system is important to
of inward traffic for medical reasons to SA and
remain competitive as it is a key cost driver.”
20
EXPATRIATE