Nigeria has always been one of PFSCM’s top countries in terms of value and volume of goods ordered and delivered, and in 2022 it remained a special focus country. Last year alone, PFSCM procured more than $32 million worth of health products for Nigeria and delivered more than 65 shipments comprising more than 250 different kinds of products, from malaria and HIV diagnostics tests to portable radiography and ultrasound systems.
In 2022, excellent stakeholder relationships and accountability across various supply chain stakeholders resulted in exceptionally smooth and quick deliveries. One notable batch of deliveries was for more than 2.4 million HIV tests worth more than $2.2 million.
PFSCM’s Client Services, Procurement, and Logistics teams work closely with suppliers and freight forwarders to expedite processes. Typically the production, shipping, and waiver approval processes for such a large order would have taken several months, but with stakeholders, each executing their part of the supply chain in perfect harmony, the first shipments were delivered within a month of price quotes being approved.
PFSCM Senior Logistics Specialist Lucas Bueno de Aguiar explains that the waiver approval through Nigeria’s automated Import Duty Exemption Certificate (IDEC) system would, alone, normally take around months, but the Principal Recipient went above and beyond to secure the waiver in far less time, thereby contributing to the fast turnaround of the whole order. De Aguiar says quotes were approved at the start of September 2022, and the first shipment was delivered in October 2022, with the remaining ones delivered in November 2022 and December 2022.
“Coordination and active engagement play a critical role in health supply chains. We know that where there is will and motivation, even complex and seemingly time-consuming processes can be simplified and sped up.”
PFSCM saw the same vigor in health supply chains at the peak of COVID-19, and one of the lessons learned from the pandemic is that there are ways to execute standard supply chain processes better and faster without compromising service or quality, he concludes.