Procurement agent and 4PL services provider, the Partnership for Supply Chain Management (PFSCM) successfully executed the delivery of eight substantial shipments of malaria rapid diagnostic tests (mRDTs) to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Uganda, navigating complex logistical challenges.
These shipments, totaling 74 containers containing 1.7 million test kits—each with multiple tests—were transported via ocean from China, India, and South Korea.
Arriving in early 2025, these mRDTs were strategically timed for Uganda’s malaria seasons, typically spanning March to May and September to November. The timely delivery will enable local health facilities to conduct rapid and accurate testing, facilitating prompt and effective treatment.
As a procurement agent and 4PL services provider, PFSCM managed the entire procurement and shipping process, prioritizing the MoH’s requirements. This included securing cost-effective freight arrangements and ensuring convenient delivery.
Luan Greeff, Logistics Lead at PFSCM, emphasized the extensive transport planning involved to optimize cost efficiency and coordinate staggered deliveries for efficient warehousing.
The logistical strategy, developed in collaboration with 3PL partners, included load optimization to maximize container space, upstream and in-country logistics planning to secure necessary resources like reefer containers and transportation, meticulous importation documentation management, and repalletization from standard to Euro pallets.
Greeff highlighted the use of PFSCM’s Load Optimization tool to guide suppliers and 3PL partners in efficiently packing mRDTs, thereby reducing container numbers and costs.
Further, PFSCM strategically secured reefer containers at various pickup points and staggered deliveries to avoid overwhelming the supply chain.
In-country logistics were carefully planned to address challenges such as truck shortages between Mombasa and Kampala and potential detention charges at and outside ports.
The process involved transit through the Port of Mombasa in Kenya, the Malaba border post in Uganda, and a temperature-controlled warehouse in Kampala for repalletization before final delivery to the National Medical Stores (NMS) in Entebbe.
Greeff credited proactive documentation management for expedited customs clearance and the use of warehouses in Kampala and Malaba for quicker pallet offloading and repacking, thus preventing detention charges.
He stressed that detailed scheduling and open communication with stakeholders were crucial for ensuring truck availability and smooth warehouse operations, enabling a consistent flow of health products to the NMS in a ready-to-store format.