Getting a COVID-19 vaccine to 7.8 billion global citizens calls for a combination of meaningful partnerships and innovative supply chain technologyThe Hill: COVID-19 doesn't care about New York or New DelhiMarian W. Wentworth and Wade Warren, January 3, 2021It is both a moral imperative—and in the strategic interest of wealthier countries—to aid in the pursuit of vaccinating 7.8 billion global citizens. Our global health security is only as strong as the weakest link in the chain. Yet even in fully industrialized nations with robust health infrastructure, the logistics of the world’s largest-ever vaccination campaign are daunting. Because of how interconnected the world is today, the economic impacts of COVID-19 have been more severe than in past pandemics. Modern economies depend on global travel, global trade and global supply chains. To combat economic instability and severe global health insecurity, we must look to an ideal combination of meaningful partnerships and innovative supply chain technology to deliver COVID-19 vaccines worldwide.This ideal combination isn’t an entirely new concept. Through decades of work in delivering treatments for malaria and HIV or in making family planning accessible to populations far from industrial centers, we have learned how to hone complex supply chains and work closely with governments, civil society, the private sector and health care workers on locally led solutions. From these experiences, we know more about what a 21st century solution to the supply chain looks like. Take, for example, the idea of the Control Tower, which is a set of tools and techniques that enable experts to proactively manage their end-to-end supply chains through increased visibility and predictive insights. Some experts estimate that as much as 20 percent of vaccines are lost due to cold chain issues or irregularities, but a modern, effective Control Tower can monitor temperature irregularities in real time and guide interventions before the product is lost.
