This archive report was first published on 21 June 2020.
African Countries Unite to Secure Medical Supplies Amid Pandemic ¶
On June 21, 2020, African countries took a significant step towards addressing the COVID-19 pandemic by establishing a digital platform to coordinate the purchase of critical medical supplies.
The Africa Medical Supplies platform, launched by the African Union, enables the 55 countries in the continent to key in and purchase essential medical commodities at a competitive price.
According to African Union Commission Chairman Moussa Faki, the platform addresses the shortage of commodities, security of suppliers, price competitiveness, and transparency in procurement.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is the chairman of the African Union, emphasized the importance of intra-African cooperation in the face of the pandemic.
“Driven by the African Union, the countries of the continent have rallied together with both agencies, to usher in an era of intra-African cooperation. The virus has unleashed the pan-Africanism that we have always wanted to see,” he said.
The platform, which was conceived by AU Special Envoy Strive Masiyiwa, allows African countries to key into the platform, type what they need, check on prices, and order as per the quantity allocated to them.
Mr. Masiyiwa explained that the platform was created in response to the shortage of commodities and the need for African countries to test more people.
“African countries were not getting lifesaving medical suppliers and diagnostic kits and were struggling, hence the need to come up with the platform,” he said.
The platform has already met the target set by the countries on what they need, with over 30 million supplies for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests and an equal number of other critical items, including N95 masks for healthcare workers and ventilators.
The pricing of the commodities has also been reduced, with the platform able to negotiate prices that are significantly lower than what African countries were previously paying.
For example, the platform was able to negotiate the price of N95 masks for healthcare workers from USD30 (Sh3000) each to Sh200.
The platform has also been designed to ensure that the commodities are distributed in a fair and equitable manner, using the World Health Organisation mechanism to allocate what each country needs.
“We allocate the commodities as per the country’s need so that they do not end up fighting for the same commodities but should a country reject what they are allocated or need more they are reallocated or added more,” Mr. Masiyiwa said.
