Dear TechNet-21 community, You may have heard about National Logistics Working Groups - either because your country has one or wants to have one, or because you came across this concept in your daily job.  A national logistics working group (NLWG) is a mechanism for coordinating national immunization supply chain and logistics activities, as well as investments made by government agencies and development partners. NLWGs have been instrumental in improving the performance of supply chain management at the national level. To learn more about or get the most up-to-date guidance documents on NLWGs, visit our topic page dedicated to them here (https://www.technet-21.org/en/topics/nlwgs). You will find not only guidances for either establishing or reinforcing NLWGs, useful related tools and resources, but also a cool map displaying known NLWGs (if your country is not in it, it should! Please contact me and I will connect you with the people in charge of this topic page). Wishing you an interesting read! If you have any follow up questions, please feel free to post them by answering to this post! Yours, Olivia    

Dear TechNet community members, Warm greetings! The cold chain situation in many countries is sub-optimal and affects the capacity of national immunization programs to deliver potent vaccines to all women and children.To help improve this situation, the Gavi Board approved the Cold Chain Equipment Platform Optimization Platform (CCEOP) in 2015 with the purpose to support the purchase of CCE. Since 2016, CCEOP WHO pre-reviews and GAVI Independent Review Committee (IRC) revealed countries’ weaknesses to provide updated and specific policies and strategies for CCE decommissioning and disposal. Though there is no policy for vaccines CCE decommissioning and disposal, countries should plan for technical support and request guidance.This could be major barriers to the implementation of the CCEOP or any future CCE investments. So I am contacting you, Dear TechNet community members, to request for best practices sharing from your countries.  Existing CCE decommissioning and disposal policy or strategy or plan for immunization Available CCE decommissioning and disposal guidelines for immunization Existing partnerships between National Immunization programs and other stakeholders (public-private-NGO) Your contribution will be very helpful to UNICEF which commits supporting countries developing policies and strategies for CCE disposal in the framework of the CCEOP implementation. Thanks for considering this request and I am looking forward to your reply. Dorothy.  

Dear TechNet community members, Happy New Year! We’d like to wish you all the best that life has to offer: health, peace and joy! Welcoming 2018, we are excited to announce that the TechNet-21 Resources Page on National Logistic Working Groups (NLWGs) has just been launched. The NLWG Resources Page aims to support structured and powerful NLWGs, which provide guidance, expertise, and technical assistance on all matters concerning immunization supply chain operations and improvement initiatives. Since 2015, the WHO-UNICEF Immunization Supply Chain & Logistics Hub has been supporting NLWGs as ‘‘leadership and coordination groups”. You may know these by other names – the ‘‘National EPI Logistics Committee” in Gambia or ‘‘National Immunization Logistics Working Groups” in Lao PDR, for instance – but whatever they’re called, these groups serve the same essential function. They are instrumental in uniting national stakeholders, opinion-formers, and decision-makers to rally behind a shared vision for the country’s immunization supply chain. Establishing and operating these working groups are crucial steps that the Ministry of Health can take to strengthen immunization supply chain, which in turn improves the availability of vaccines and immunization commodities, vaccine potency, and supply chain efficiency. The resources page is a convenient hub for key materials, guidance and tools related to the establishment or reinforcement of NLWGs, and we hope you will find it useful. We encourage you to check out the Resources Page for yourselves, and do not hesitate to let us know if you need further information or support. Thank you. Dorothy.

UNICEF supports countries in achieving their national immunization goals. The achievement of these goals depend on having strong Immunization Supply Chains Management (ISCM) systems in place that are routinely assessed and improved through the comprehensive Effective Vaccine Management Assessment. The objectives for ISCM are to achieve adequate supply for every immunization session without temperature damage and at the lowest possible cost per fully immunized child. To achieve these objectives the country’s immunization programme needs strong cold chain equipment management systems and also need dedicated capacity at all levels of the country to maintain and expand the cold chain and to adopt new innovative cold chain technology that is more robust with lower operating costs. Many countries have expressed demand for technical assistance for comprehensive planning and upgrading and expanding their cold chain system so that they are aligned with their coverage and equity goals. Furthermore countries have requested support to choose the most optimal and appropriate technology that is aligned with the country context. UNICEF and partners have worked with the GAVI Alliance to establish the GAVI Cold Chain Optimization Platform (CCEOP) that provides financing to countries to ensure adequate and optimal cold chain capacity is available at subnational level to help achieve the programmatic coverage and equity objectives. It will also help countries to accelerate the deployment of higher-performing technologies that have lower operating costs. This priority also aligns with the strategic goals of the WHO and UNICEF immunization supply chain Hub to strengthen the capacity of countries and to intensify and coordinate efforts to catalyse immunization supply chains improvements through the comprehensive EVM process. Purpose The purpose of this announcement is to establish a pre-screened Experts Pool of Supply Chain Specialist in Cold Chain Equipment management and Temperature Monitoring and Control that can be deployed on as needs basis. These experts are expected to work in close collaboration with UNICEF Programme Division, Supply Division, WHO, Regional and Country Offices and other external partners (such as CHAI, PATH, AMP, JSI,…) in providing technical assistance and applying latest guidance, tools and methods at country level to strengthen the country’s cold chain equipment management system. Tasks include to support the process of conducting national cold chain inventories that can be updated regularly, developing and supporting the implementation of rehabilitation and expansion plans; preventative and corrective maintenance plan; cold chain equipment deployment and installation plans. In addition, qualified experts from this pool may be tasked to help the national counterpart to prepare Cold Chain Equipment Optimization Platform (CCEOP) application submission, work with partners in improving and updating global guidance, tools, methods and capacity building efforts including supporting countries to establish or strengthen National Logistics Working Group (NLWG). In particular the consultant will: (a) Support countries by providing technical assistance to improve the cold chain equipment management systems and implement priorities as identified through the EVM process and to support the application to and implementation of GAVI Cold Chain Optimization Platform that is aligned with country plans (cMYP, EVM improvement plans, GAVI HSS). Support also includes prepare and review documentations of CCEOP applications if required and as requested by the Ministry of Health. (b) Review, update and develop guidance, tools and methods for cold chain equipment management in collaboration with the stakeholders. (c) Develop training materials and implement trainings for cold chain equipment management including CCEOP application processes in the role of “subject matter expert”. (d) Undertake studies to measure impact of iSC interventions such as CCEOP but not limited to it on coverage and equity. (e) Support countries to establish NLWG or strengthen it if already exist and weak in order to ensure national ownership of all planned activities. (f) Conduct studies/research and generate evidence to document best practices in improving iSCM. (g) Conduct cost benefit analysis of innovative solutions such as adoption CTC vaccines. Expected results (based on country needs): Based on country needs, the consultant should be able to provide appropriate technical support in the following three (3) categories. Applicants are advised to indicate in which technical areas below they are applying. They can select all these three areas or can opt only one depending on their expertise: Technical Area1: Cold Chain Equipment Management (CCEM) · Support and/or coordinate part or the whole CCEOP process as per Gavi CCEOP application 2017 guidance Cold chain inventory and its report Rehabilitation plan Maintenance plan CCE deployment plan Segmentation of health facilities · Provide support at the country level to complete the CCEOP application form and budget to the highly acceptable level · Support the country for CCEOP equipment deployment and implementation processes Technical Area 2: Temperature Monitoring and Control (TMC) · Conduct a temperature mapping study in the vaccine cold rooms in selected countries using WHO tool (protocol, training, data analysis) and build national capacity to conduct future studies · Coordinate a temperature monitoring study in the vaccine distribution routes in selected countries using the WHO protocol and the UNICEF guide (temperature monitoring handbook) and build national capacity to conduct future studies · Support the development and deployment of guidance, training materials and SOPs to ensure adoption and sustained use of the system by health workers and managers Technical Area 3: Other Immunization Supply Chain Catalytic activities and studies · Undertake studies to measure impact of iSC interventions such as CCEOP but not limited to it on coverage and equity. · Support countries to establish NLWG or if exist and weak strengthen it to ensure national ownership of all planned activities. · Conduct studies/research and generate evidence to document best practices in improving iSCM. · Conduct cost benefit analysis of innovative solutions such as adoption CTC vaccines. Duty Station Remote with trips as requested by the countries among UNICEF Headquarters, Regional Offices and Country Offices. May vary depending on deployment. Timeframe: The Expert Pool will be valid for a year from its establishment. Start date: 1 August 2017 End date: 31 July 2018 Mid - Senior Level Competencies · Strong analytical, oral & written communication skills · Proven track record in project management with the emphasis on planning, budgeting and reporting · Effective presenter including ability to adapt the message and visual aids for multiple audiences to deliver concise, impactful presentations · Effective facilitator with proven ability to engage and train a group of individuals (through an interpreter if necessary) · Demonstrated ability to work in a multi-cultural environment · Demonstrated ability to work in a team Technical skills and knowledge on some or all of the following · Proven experience working in multi-stakeholder and multi-cultural settings · Experience in developing inventories and cold chain rehabilitation and expansion plans at country level · Experience in writing complex funding proposals, developing multi-year budgets and operational plans for cold chain equipment management and temperature monitoring devices · Experience in training, planning and delivery of technical assistance · Proven track record in interfacing with national ministries of health · Proficiency in WHO PQS-listed cold chain equipment · Experience and knowledge on the Gavi CCE OP application documents and process · Proficiency in the development of technical SOPs for cold chain equipment management is an advantage Work experience on some or all of the following · An Advanced University Degree in public health or other health related area or social sciences is desired. · Demonstrated solid experience in development of the Gavi CCE OP, temperature monitoring studies. · At least 3-5 years of experience in international public health programme with experience in resource-limited environments · Experience of EVM assessment and cIP development in at least one country outside his/her country of residence is an advantage · Must have experience in conducting cold chain equipment inventory outside his/her country of residence · Experience in temperature monitoring systems implementation, and studies · Experience in SOP adaptation support outside his/her country of residence Languages · Fluency in written and spoken either English or French is required. Proficiency in Arabic language is highly desired. Knowledge of local languages is an added value.