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| Ministry of Health Secretary, Asha Ali Abdulla (seated right) and Nathan Mulure, representative of Novartis (seated center) signing a contract to implement a ground breaking initiative that will provide medicine stock visibility. SMS 4 Life solution aims at reducing stock-outs in Zanzibar. The signing ceremony held at Verde Hotel earlier today. Looking on is Vodacom Enterprise Director, Arjun Dhillon (standing left) and other representatives from The Ministry of Health and Novartis. |
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| Ministry of Health Secretary, Asha Ali Abdulla (front right) and Nathan Mulure, representative of Novartis (front left) exchanging the signed contract to implement a ground breaking initiative that will provide medicine stock visibility. SMS 4 Life solution aims at reducing stock-outs in Zanzibar. The signing ceremony held at Verde Hotel earlier today. Looking on is Vodacom Enterprise Director, Arjun Dhillon (clapping left) and other representatives from The Ministry of Health and Novartis. |
Medicine stock-outs occur when pharmacies cannot supply medications as they are needed. In some cases, being unable to supply medicines can have very serious effects on health. The new system will allow regular monitoring of stock levels, reducing the chances of stock-outs occurring.
With the implementation of the supply chain application called SMS for Life, the Ministry of Health aims to improve access to essential medicines for the people of Zanzibar, therefore helping promote good health and well-being on the island. Vodacom and Novartis will work together be using the Mezzanine technology platform and provide training, thereby enabling the digital journey Zanzibar is embarking on.
“Clinics around Zanzibar often struggle to meet the demand for critical medication. This new program addresses this challenge by providing innovative solutions that help healthcare authorities improve their stock management. By rolling it out across Zanzibar, we will improve our island’s healthcare system and patients’ quality of life” said Harusi Said Suleiman of the Ministry of Health, Zanzibar.
The SMS for Life system uses a mobile phone-based technology to monitor medicine stock levels through an electronic platform that operates in the cloud. It will be deployed to around 190 Government-owned health facilities across Zanzibar (Unguja and Pemba) to report weekly medicine stock levels. By doing so, it will help ensure that medicines are available when needed in these facilities for the patients they serve.
Nathan Mulure, Head of East and Southern African Cluster for Novartis Social Business, sees the agreement as an excellent example of the public and private sectors working together to provide a real solution to challenges in the healthcare system. “Supporting the Ministry of Health to improve the healthcare system in Tanzania through projects like SMS for Life is a key part of our vision to improve all healthcare across Africa. Through our partnership with Vodacom and its subsidiary company (Mezzanine), we can deliver innovative solutions to ensure healthcare systems meet the needs of patients in Zanzibar” he said.
Also commenting on the partnership, Arjun Dhillon, Enterprise Director for Vodacom, said: “Innovating for Health is one of Vodacom Tanzania’s main focus areas. We are delighted to be able to leverage the platform developed by our subsidiary company (Mezzanine) to improve the health of people in Zanzibar. Through SMS for Life, remote health facilities will now be able to report stock levels proactively”.
For more information, please contact:
Khadija Shaaban, Ministry of Health of Zanzibar. Tel +255 777 436 010. khadija.shaaban@gmail.com
Rosalynn Mworia, Vodacom Tanzania. rmworia@vodacom.co.tz
Nadine Schecker, Novartis. Tel +41 79 682 13 26. nadine.schecker@novartis.com
About SMS for Life
SMS for Life was initially launched in 2009 by Novartis, with the support of public and private partners, to help prevent stock-outs of antimalarial in Tanzania. It has evolved over time to expand to other diseases and commodities. Today, SMS for Life contributes to increasing quality of care in rural communities across Africa by tracking the stock levels of several commodities such as medicines and vaccines, therefore enabling that timely action is taken to replenish stocks. In addition to stock visibility, the system enables to collect timely disease surveillance data, hence allowing local, regional and national public health actors to monitor and support the operations in the primary health facilities.The platform also includes training programs and educational video resources, jointly developed with local health authorities, to support the continuous education of health workers. SMS for Life is part of Novartis Social Business. www.socialbusiness.novartis.com
About Vodacom Tanzania PLC
Vodacom Tanzania PLC is the leading mobile communication service provider with the fastest data network in the country. We provide communication services to over 12 million subscribers. Vodacom Tanzania and its subsidiary companies are part of the Vodacom Group registered in South Africa which is in turn owned by Vodacom Group Plc of the United Kingdom. It has been registered in the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) with registration number ISIN: TZ1886102715 Stock name: VODA.
For further information please visit our website: www.vodacom.co.tz
For more information visit: https://vodacom.co.tz
About Mezzanine
Mezzanine is a subsidiary of Vodacom developing robust, scalable and unique digital solutions, using its own technology platform to assist in creating productive societies across Africa. Mezzanine developed the SMS for Life digital solution and partnered with Novartis in the deployment of the system in Zambia and Nigeria.www.mezzanineware.com
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