DHL pushes for public-private partnerships in global health schemes

A new white paper from DHL, which looks back on the global logistics response to the COVID-19 pandemic, seeks to emphasise the important role of the private sector in countries’ public health schemes.

DHL has distributed over 200 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine across more than 120 countries, according to the paper. 350 DHL centres and over 9,000 flights were involved in the rollout.

According to DHL, multisector partnerships enabled rapid vaccine distribution, particularly in countries with less developed public health infrastructure in comparison with the USA and the UK.

Credit: Aleksandar Pasaric

DHL cited the public-private HOPE Consortium, of which it is a partner, as an effective solution in the United Arab Emirates.

While scientists developed vaccines at a remarkable pace, manufacturers and logistics firms stepped in to ramp up the scale and speed of production and distribution.

At the same time, the military was able to assist with transportation when commercial routes faced congestion.

DHL noted that the resilience of supply chains where the government had invested heavily in logistical infrastructure was a major factor in the effectiveness of vaccine roll-outs, with the UAE as a particular example.

Source: Supply Chain Digital