Improved Supply Chains for Neglected Tropical Disease Drugs (SC-NTDs) Project

On January 30, 2012, the London Declaration, a new, coordinated effort to accelerate progress towards eliminating or controlling ten neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by the end of the decade, was announced. The declaration was signed by 13 pharmaceutical companies, the U.S., U.K., and U.A.E. governments, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank, and other global health organizations.

There has been a productive alliance of the key actors in the “first mile” of the NTD drug supply chain, led by the major pharmaceutical corporations donating NTD drugs, which has made great strides in improving the supply and coordination of NTD drug shipments to central medical stores (CMS). This work is being carried forward by the NTD Supply Chain Forum (NTDSCF) which meets quarterly to improve the supply chain from manufacture to shipment of the drugs. The NTDSCF and other key stakeholders identified in-country ”last mile” supply chains from CMSs down to the NTD treatment recipients as the next big challenge.

The Gates Foundation contracted JSI to implement the ‘Improved Supply Chains for NTD Drugs project, (SC-NTD). The goal of this project was to contribute to the successful strengthening of improved supply chains for drugs to prevent and treat NTDs (principally the preventive chemotherapy drugs) to facilitate the achievement of the London Declaration goals.

To contribute to the successful strengthening of improved supply chains for drugs to prevent and treat NTDs, JSI:

• Created a summary analysis of previous work in NTD supply chain assessments
• Assembled anecdotal and evidence-based information already available on strengths and weaknesses in ‘last mile’ pharmaceutical supply chains in Ghana, Malawi, and Tanzania
• Benchmarked information available on NTD supply chains against other comparable supply chains in NTD endemic countries
• Prepared a supply chain segmentation analysis
• Collaborated with NTD partners on their work to develop the ‘first mile’ supply chain
• Examined scope for incorporating NTD supply chain reviews into an existing review process
• Developed and field tested a draft NTD supply chain assessment tool
• Prepared a development plan for NTD last mile drug supply chains to ensure the ability to achieve the 2020 NTD goals

The SC-NTDs project ended in January 2015.