Country Overview

In Mozambique, roughly 1.8 million adults and children are living with HIV/AIDS and approximately 190,000 are currently receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART). The government hopes to increase this number to 215,000 by the end of 2010.  

SCMS supports the government’s goals with a focus on improving information sharing, building capacity, enhancing procurement and distribution, and improving laboratory logistics.

Key Objectives

• Improving information sharing: SCMS is working to improve the coordination of data among central and provincial levels and Central de Medicamentos e Artigos Médicos (CMAM) departments, reinforced by providing training to CMAM on how to use the data to drive effective decision-making.
• Building capacity: We are working to build forecasting, procurement and logistics experience and expertise at both the central and facility levels.
• Enhancing procurement and distribution: Rapid scale-up of treatment sites has created challenges in procurement and distribution. SCMS is conducting activities to improve the usage of warehouses to meet the needs created by the public sector's scale-up plan.
• Improving laboratory logistics: SCMS is focusing on identifying and building processes to coordinate and share laboratory supply information while improving forecasting and procurement.

Activities and Impact

Value of commodities delivered as of April 2010: $54 million

Warehousing: In December 2009, the new Zimpeto Central Medical Store was inaugurated by the Minister of Health (MOH). SCMS procured the racking systems, forklifts and other equipment on behalf of PEPFAR and provided technical assistance in both warehouse management, software implementation and security to align operations with international best practice standards.

Procurement: In 2008, SCMS took over the responsibility of supplying laboratory reagents and consumables to 20 sites with 56 machines for Mozambique's PEPFAR-supported laboratory network. To simplify procurement and leverage better pricing, SCMS signed an indefinite quantity contracts with a local supplier. Currently, SCMS provides monthly supplies of hematology, biochemistry and CD4 reagents for 78 instruments in 40 PEPFAR-supported sites, working from a standardized list of about 100 products. In June 2009, PEPFAR-supported laboratories reported a major achievement for SCMS: no stockouts of reagents or consumables. Since SCMS took over the responsibility for procurement and supply chain management of lab supplies, consumption of commodities doubled, and national coverage expanded, most notably in rural areas. Both the number of sites and the number of tests conducted continue to grow. Compared to an average of 20,000 CD4 tests conducted per month in 2008, today the average is over 40,000 tests conducted per month.

Technical Assistance SCMS helped CMAM resolve its longstanding electricity supply problems at the newly opened Zimpeto Central Medical Store. SCMS helped the MOH infrastructure department reinstall all switches and cables, position new UPS equipment, and connect the office plan to the main generator. With servers now protected from power surges and interruptions, CMAM can make the most of computer technology and other resources that rely on electricity.