Country Overview

To help increase testing for HIV in Namibia, SCMS has supplied over 30,000 rapid HIV tests and related medical consumables to VCT sites.

With an HIV prevalence rate of 17.8 percent, Namibia’s is the fifth highest in the world. Guided by a five-year strategic framework that continues through 2009, the country has made substantial progress in providing access to antiretroviral (ARV) treatment and in preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

SCMS supports the government of Namibia’s efforts by helping to strengthen and enhance national supply chains for HIV/AIDS commodities—and support building new ones where needed—in order to ensure long-term sustainability of distribution systems.

Key Objectives

• Strengthen the supply chain systems for HIV/AIDS commodities.
• Enhance existing systems to promote information sharing.
• Improve procurement management systems.

Activities and Impact

Value of commodities delivered as of December 2008: 1.5 Million

Forecasting: SCMS is working with Namibia’s Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) to improve ARV forecasting and quantification. Program data reported monthly by the country’s 35 ART sites is processed to obtain the national population of patients receiving ARVs, including details on regimens and dosage forms. These data are used to determine the average scale-up rate per month and project the future enrollment of patients in ART. Forecasts have resulted in little or no stockouts or overstocks, better budgeting and planning, and reduced shipping and commodity costs—making it possible for more people to get on treatment and stay on treatment.

Commodity management: In resource-limited settings, home-based care (HBC) kits are transforming how palliative care is administered to people living with HIV/AIDS and other chronic illnesses. The kits include basic medicines, essentials for personal hygiene, and materials for protecting caregivers from infection. In April and May 2008, at the request of Namibia’s Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS), SCMS conducted an assessment of HBC kit supply chain management. The assessment has led to a supply system redesign to ensure kits are continuously available for HBC providers and integrate the kits into the overall pharmaceutical supply system.

SCMS has also supplied HIV rapid test kits and medical consumables for voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) programs in Namibia. We conducted a design workshop for VCT logistics systems and trained staff of all VCT centers in the new logistics systems. The participants developed a direct delivery system for rapid test kits and medical consumables to the 17 VCT partner testing sites and also developed standard operating procedures and forms for implementing the new logistics systems. To help increase testing for HIV in Namibia, SCMS has supplied over 30,000 rapid HIV tests and related medical consumables to VCT sites.

Warehousing and inventory management: SCMS has supported a series of interventions to improve warehousing in support of HIV/AIDS program scale-up.

Laboratory logistics: SCMS reviewed the commodity management systems of the Namibia Institute of Pathology (NIP) to help strengthen NIP’s capacity to support scale-up of treatment programs. To improve the agency’s central storage capacity and infrastructure, SCMS helped NIP with a plan for reorganization and redesign of the layout of the central medical warehouse. Initial reorganization freed up 30 percent of usable space. SCMS has also initiated a process of developing a quality management system for the NIP stores.

Logistics management information system: SCMS is developing and implementing an LMIS that can monitor national pipelines of ARVs, test kits, laboratory supplies and other HIV/AIDS-related commodities.

Medical transmission/blood safety: We are conducting forecasting and supply planning of blood bags to ensure adequate storage capacity—in support of nationwide efforts to support blood safety and injections safety.