Kemsa launches new procurement system
The Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (Kemsa) has launched an Integrated Logistics Information Management System (iLMIS) that is aimed at streamlining the supply chain of commodities at the agency to ensure it is more responsive to the needs of the public health system in the country.
Kemsa CEO Andrew Mulwa says the innovation is the first of its kind in the world and has been termed as a game changer, set to revolutionise the mode of operation at Kemsa which for a long time has been on the receiving end, as a result of procurement mishaps witnessed at the institution.
“The system has revolutionised Kemsa’s operandus modus with our stakeholders and instil confidence in our development partners who have continuously invested to create transparency and accountability in our systems. Our donors are able to track key performance indicators in the system which define various programs and this informs resource allocation towards commodities security and supply chain improvement which contribute to supply chain operational excellence,” said Mulwa.
He adds that the system integrates artificial intelligence technology that sends early warnings and alerts to the agency’s command centre and other relevant stakeholders, with the data gathered from public health institutions in the country informing the procurement and supply patterns of commodities undertaken by Kemsa.
According to Mulwa, the adoption of cutting-edge technology especially for the various program commodities currently under implementation, is aimed at enhancing accountability and saving costs for the government as well as scaling up of the system in other countries.
“I see the system being implemented by other countries across the world. This will be adopted as best practice in the supply chain system which will focus on assuring value for money for governments and development partners in the health sector. As we speak, the following programs have adopted its use, HIV, TB, Malaria, Oncology, Non-Communicable diseases, Nutrition, Ophthalmology, and family planning amongst others.” added Mulwa
Eliminate wastage
The ILMIS system has been touted as the solution to the elimination of wastage and stock-outs in the health commodity supply chain by creating end-to-end commodity visibility.
Dennis Ndwiga, Business Development Coordinator for Strategic Partnerships at Kemsa explains that the innovation is working towards transforming operations of the agency to be more resilient and responsive to the needs of today’s healthcare system demands.
Ndwiga who has been at the core of the development of the system says ILMIS is configured to use algorithms and AI to make decisions on the resupply of commodities based on the consumption patterns of the products in the health facilities.
The application is equipped with GPS coordinates of all public health facilities in the country, a feature that ensures that medical supplies are delivered on time and at the right facility error free under the electronic Proof of Delivery(e-Pod) system.
In 2021, Kemsa was feted for developing the e-POD mobile application in the last mile delivery of medical supplies at the Global Health Supply Chain Summit. The e-POD system has been hailed for reducing the turnaround time of delivery from the previous 21 days to seven days therefore increasing efficiency.
The program which is already running in over 9,000 public health facilities in the country has recorded huge success as result of the measures taken from the commodity early warning and system that indicates overstocking, understocking and optimal stocking.
