Private Distributors
Putting in the Time: Continuous Advocacy for Policy Change in DRC
After four years of advocacy, VillageReach recently celebrated a critical policy milestone in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). In September 2025, the DRC government published a new legal text, the National Drug Supply System (SNAM) decree. This SNAM decree explicitly allows World Health...
Improving Working Capital Management: Helping Private Pharmaceutical Distributors in Africa Get More Products to People
Access to safe, effective, quality and affordable health products remains a challenge for half the African population, despite medicines and vaccines being the most effective tools for both preventing and treating diseases (Sustainable Development Goal 3.8). In fact, public health facilities often face severe...
The Democratic Republic of Congo launches Congo Drone Académie
Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (August 12, 2024) – Today, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) officially launched the Congo Drone Académie, a first of its kind training initiative for remote drone piloting at the National Institute of Professional Preparation (INPP) in Limete, Kinshasa....
La République démocratique du Congo lance officiellement la toute première académie drone, Congo Drone Académie
Kinshasa, République démocratique du Congo (12 Août 2024) – Aujourd’hui, la RDC (République démocratique du Congo) lance officiellement le Congo Drone Académie, une initiative démarrant la formation en télé pilotage des drones à l’INPP (Institut National de Préparation Professionnelle) à son Siège National à...
Increasing access to quality medicines through public-private collaboration
Lire cet article en français. Access to quality health products is essential for achieving universal health coverage (UHC). Ensuring both access and quality is critical to building high-performing public health supply chains because supply chains that get products to people wherever and whenever they...
Améliorer l'accès à des médicaments de qualité grâce à la collaboration entre les secteurs public et privé
Read this article in English. L’accès à des produits de santé de qualité est essentiel pour parvenir à une CSU( Couverture Santé Universelle). Garantir à la fois l’accès et la qualité est essentiel pour mettre en place des chaînes d’approvisionnement en santé publique performantes, car les chaînes...
Accroitre L’Industrie Locale Par La Promotion Des Fabricants Et Distributeurs pharmaceutiques En RDC
Par Patrick CIZUNGU et Martin MAHOMBISA Read this article in English. En République démocratique du Congo (RDC), le secteur local de fabrication et de distribution de produits pharmaceutiques est essentiel pour atteindre la couverture santé universelle. Ces entreprises jouent un rôle important dans la...
Leveraging Local Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Distributors in DRC
Lire cet article en français. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the local pharmaceutical manufacturing and distribution sector is critical for achieving universal health coverage. These companies play a significant role in manufacturing, procuring, storing, and distributing health products to pharmacies, hospitals and...
‘’Intégration des distributeurs privés lucratifs’’ dans le système national d’approvisionnement de la République démocratique du Congo (RDC) : Les leçons apprises de VillageReach
Read this article in English. Le renforcement des chaînes d’approvisionnement des produits de santé dans de nombreux pays à revenus faible et intermédiaire (PRFI) est essentiel pour atteindre la couverture santé universelle (CSU) d’ici 2030. Mais pour que les communautés reçoivent des soins de...
Integrating Private Pharmaceutical Distributors in Public Health Supply Chains: Lessons from the DRC
Lire cet article en français. Strengthening public health supply chains in many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is essential to achieving universal health coverage (UHC) by 2030. But for communities to receive quality health care, they must have consistent and affordable access to quality...
Four lessons learned for optimizing health products delivery to hard-to-reach locations
After more than four years’ experience of managing the vaccine supply chain in the Equateur province of northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), it is high time for us to consider the lessons we have learned in optimizing the distribution of health products to...Background
VillageReach is increasing collaboration between African ministries of health and private pharmaceutical distributors, (companies that procure products from manufacturers, importers and other distributors and then store, sell and transport these products to hospitals, health facilities and pharmacies). We are also working with African distributors directly to provide technical assistance on working capital management and ensuring quality in transportation.
Essential medicines to be delivered to health centers. (Photo Credit: Denis Onyodi)
How It Works
Collaboration with Certified Distributors
In September 2021, we began working with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) government and partners to remove barriers hindering private distributors from participating in the public health supply chain. In partnership with the National Regulatory Authority (ACOREP) and the national trade association (FEC), we developed a Directory of Distributors and Manufactures that are certified as compliant to WHO Good Distribution Practices and Good Manufacturer Practices.
Across the African continent, private pharmaceutical distributors are critical players in the health supply chain but are currently underutilized as identified through a first-of-its-kind benchmarking of 10 African countries.
Taking our lessons from DRC we are working with regional and international organizations to increase collaboration between certified private pharmaceutical distributors and other African ministries of health.
Private Distributor Involvement in Public Health Supply Chains
Working Capital Management
VillageReach began partnering with DRC Federation of Essential Medicines Purchasing Centers (FEDECAME) in 2024 to address the working capital management challenges faced by DRC certified distributors. Our technical assistance for African private distributors uses a comprehensive approach to develop tailored working capital improvement plans that help distributors optimize their working capital, combining:
- External factors: PESTEL (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental and Legal) analysis and market dynamics analyses to contextualize distributors’ operating environments;
- Quantitative performance: Evaluation of working capital efficiency and liquidity metrics;
- Management practices: Assessment of distributor working capital management practices, including policies, procedures, tools and roles and responsibilities.
- Working capital management improvement support
- Investment Readiness support
Resources
Measuring the impact of integrating private distributors in public health supply chains
Educational Pathways for a Skilled Supply Chain Workforce
The Role of Gender in Building Resilient Health Supply Chains in DRC
Private Distributors Integration into Public Health Supply Chains (PHSC) – Benchmarking Results
Répertoire de Établissements Pharmaceutiques Privés Certifiés en RDC
Optimized Supply Chain Model Reduces Health System Costs in DRC
Increasing Access to Health Products in the DRC
The potential of next-generation supply chains to ease DRC’s “Casse-tête”
DRC Supply Chain Assessment (English)
Private Distributor Integration Dashboard
The Private Distributor Integration Dashboard contains five easy-to-understand visualizations of benchmark survey responses. The Dashboard is in PowerBI and allows users to easily make comparisons by question using the Country dropdown menu. Click here to access the Private Distributor Integration Dashboard.
Partners
Government
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DRC Ministry of Public Health:
- ACOREP (Congolese Pharmaceutical National Regulatory Authority) at the national level and the Provincial Health Divisions (DPS) at the provincial level
- The Federation of Enterprises of Congo (FEC) and its Manufacturers and Distributors of Medicines subgroup
- The FEDECAME (Federation of Essential Drug Supply Centers)
- PDSS (DRC Health System Strengthening for Better Maternal and Child Health Results Project)
- PMNS (DRC Multisectoral Nutrition and Health Project )
Technical Partners
- African Pharmaceutical Distributors Association (ADPA)
- International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (IFPW)
- S. Pharmacopeia (USP)
- i+ solutions
- QUAMED
Donors
- Gates Foundation
- Vitol Foundation
- World Bank
Related Global Impact
See the latest updates from our work to improve access to quality healthcare in the world’s most underserved communities.