Bush Administration Awards Three-Year, $77M Contract To Establish Supply Network for HIV/AIDS Drugs in Africa

The Bush administration on Tuesday awarded a contract worth up to $77 million to help create a supply system that will speed the delivery of HIV/AIDS-related drugs in Africa, the AP/Washington Post reports. The three-year contract, which was awarded to a network called Partnership for Supply Chain Management, will help developing countries negotiate for low-cost drugs as well as set up systems at the local level to help store the drugs in secure warehouses and transport them to clinics. The network also will serve as "one-stop shopping" for HIV-related products, including HIV test kits and basic medical supplies, such as gloves and sterilization equipment (AP/Washington Post, 9/27). The contract, granted under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief through USAID, could handle $500 million worth of drugs over the three-year period. The partnership is made up of 15 institutions from the private sector, not-for-profit and faith-based communities with knowledge in such fields as African health care or medical supply systems (USAID release, 9/27).