Annual Report 2019

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This is
a wake-up call.

The health of every person is profoundly affected by climate change.

© UNICEF

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“New phenomena, such as climate change, are posing new threats and new risks to already heavy investments that countries have made.”
Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator

Achim Steiner

UNDP Administrator

A child born today will experience a world that is more than 4 degrees warmer than the pre-industrial average, with climate change impacting human health from infancy and adolescence to adulthood and old age.

© UNICEF

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Without accelerated intervention, this new era will come to define the health of the planet and people at every stage of their lives.

The global climate crisis will challenge already overwhelmed health systems and undermine progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and universal health coverage (UHC).

© thelancet.com

© UNICEF / UN0154526 / Batbaatar

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The health sector, whose mandate is to prevent and cure disease, makes a major contribution to the global climate crisis.

In fact, if the global health sector were a country, it would be the fifth-largest greenhouse gas emitter on the planet.
© Health care climate footprint report | Health Care Without Harm.

The health sector purchases a broad array of products including chemicals, electronics, plastics, medical devices, energy generation technologies, laboratory reagents, anaesthetic gases, pharmaceuticals and food. The production, packaging, transportation, use and disposal of these products has a significant impact on the health of people and the environment.

Bold new approaches

Health programmes, policymaking, and research are needed in order to change course.

© UNICEF / UNI325833 / Abdul

© UNDP Bangladesh / Fahad Kaizer

This is why, the UN, through the UN informal Interagency Task Team on Sustainable Procurement in the Health Sector (SPHS), is supporting the development and implementation of sustainable and ethical procurement policies that positively impact the global health supply chain to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

It is time to step up efforts to create a better world for each and every one of us.

Be a part of the change.
Reduce health care's climate footprint now.

SPHS Members are fully committed to lowering their environmental and social impact of their procurement to contribute to a more eco-friendly health sector and improve human and environmental health.

How much do the UN SPHS Agencies spend on health?

Total health procurement volumes (US$)

3.4 billion
Share of procurement categories (US$)
  • Pharmaceuticals, contraceptives, vaccines
  • Medical equipment
  • Health care services
  • Laboratory and testing equipment

The main source of the data is extracted from the 2018 Annual Statistical Report on United Nations Procurement, which examines the combined spending on goods and services of 39 United Nations organisations in detail. The Report helps the SPHS Secretariat to analyze the key statistical information about the procurement done by SPHS member agencies on health commodities and services.

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Spotlight
& Success Stories

As the United Nations is celebrating its seventy-fifth anniversary, the SPHS members continue to change the world by providing wide-ranging benefits in the global health sector and prioritizing human and environmental health.

01Success story

Multilateral Agencies Launch Joint Plan to Boost Global Health Goals

12 multilateral agencies, including Gavi, the Global Fund, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNITAID and WHO, launched a joint plan to better support countries over the next 10 years to accelerate progress towards the health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Developed over 18 months, Stronger Collaboration, Better Health: Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-being for All outlines how a dozen multilateral health, development and humanitarian agencies will collaborate to be more efficient and provide more streamlined support to countries to deliver universal health coverage and achieve the health-related SDG targets.

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Group photo on the occasion of the UN Staff Day. UN Photo/Emmanuel Hungrecker
© UN Geneva

© The Global Fund / Quinn Ryan Mattingly

02Success story

Global Health Security with the Global Fund

Investing in global health is an effective way to achieve greater security and stability, to protect communities worldwide from infectious disease and to halt emerging health threats. The Global Fund strengthens countries’ ability to prevent, detect and respond effectively to current and emerging health threats.

Global health security means being ready to detect new threats early and prevent outbreaks. That’s why the Global Fund invests in helping countries end epidemics and build the systems that safeguard against future health threats.

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03Success story

The Global Fund Donors Pledge US$14 Billion in Fight to End Epidemics

In an unprecedented show of global solidarity, donors at the Global Fund's Sixth Replenishment Conference pledged US$14.02 billion for the next three years – the largest amount ever raised for a multilateral health organization, and the largest amount by the Global Fund. The funds will help save 16 million lives and end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria by 2030.

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© The Global Fund / John Rae

© UNOPS

04Success story

Diseases without Borders

Over the last 10 years, the number of malaria cases has decreased dramatically in Southeast Asia. So why is malaria still a risk? Because there is a new threat emerging from countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion: Partial resistance to artemisinin (a critical ingredient for treating falciparum malaria, the deadliest form of the disease) and resistance to its partner drugs used in artemisinin-based combination therapies is increasing.

Since 2014, UNOPS – along with the National Malaria Control Programme, the World Health Organization and civil society organizations – has managed the implementation of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria’s Regional Artemisinin-resistance Initiative (RAI). Now in its second phase, RAI2-Elimination (RAI2E) is focused on containing the spread of resistance and eliminating falciparum malaria by the end of 2030.

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05Success story

WHO and UNOPS Supporting Public Health Care Services in Syria

“People who were previously forced to travel long distances in search of health care can now get the help they need in their own governorates.”
Elizabeth Hoff - WHO Representative in Syria
In response to the ongoing crisis in Syria, the WHO and UNOPS delivered life-saving medical equipment to health care facilities throughout the country with funding from the government of Japan.

The delivery of medical equipment in Syria –worth over US$ 12 million– comes at a critical time. Nine years into the conflict, more than half of the country’s public hospitals and healthcare centres are either closed or only partially functioning. Over two-thirds of functioning facilities have reported dire shortages of medicines and supplies. And in many governorates affected by the conflict, medical equipment has either been destroyed or is malfunctioning.

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© WHO Syria 2019

© UNOPS

06Success story

UNOPS is Fighting Corruption and Improving Health Care in Guatemala

In Guatemala, the public health care system struggles to keep up with the demands of an aging and ever-growing population. Limited resources, high medical costs, poor infrastructure and high levels of perceived corruption in the public sector only serve to further challenge the system.

In 2015, it was discovered that major cases of corruption were affecting medicine procurement in Guatemala’s Social Security Institute (IGSS) – the branch of government that provides, among other services, hospital and clinical services, pensions and income protection benefits. Certain suppliers were found to be unfairly benefiting from government procurement while medicine supplies for millions of Guatemalans were at risk.

Since then, UNOPS has been working with IGSS to improve transparency in its procurement processes, playing a fundamental role in the strengthening of institutional procurement capacities.

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07Success story

Gavi Sets Ambitious Goal to Immunise 300 Million People by 2025, Leaving No One Behind

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance has called on donors to back plans to immunise an additional 300 million children, saving up to eight million lives, in developing countries between 2021 and 2025, launching a fundraising drive of at least US$ 7.4 billion. A total of US$ 3.6 billion will be invested by developing country governments in their own vaccine programmes over the period, up from US$ 1.6 billion in 2016-2020.

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© Gavi

© United Nations Population Fund

08Success story

Ethiopia Commits to Financing Reproductive Health Commodities

By increasing the domestic financing for sexual and reproductive health commodities, Ethiopia is experiencing an improvement in the contraceptive prevalence rate. In 2000, the rate was as low as 6% and increased to 36% in 2016. The current data for 2019 shows an increment of 41%. UNFPA supports Ethiopia with the procurement of family planning commodities and technical assistance that has strengthened the country's supply chain management system.

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09Success story

Want to End Preventable Maternal Deaths? Spend At Least Six Times More by 2030

How much would it cost to achieve a world where no woman dies from pregnancy-related causes, lacks access to modern family planning, or is subject to harmful practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM) or child marriage – all in about 10 years?

New preliminary figures compiled by researchers from UNFPA and Johns Hopkins University, in collaboration with Victoria University and Avenir Health, reveal that to end preventable maternal deaths in 76 high-burden countries by 2030, annual spending would need to rise six-fold, to US$7.8 billion from US$1.4 billion in 2018. Achieving zero women dying from preventable causes related to childbirth within the next decade in those 76 countries has a total price tag of US$61 billion in direct health service costs.

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© United Nations Population Fund

© The Global Fund / Ryan Quinn Mattingly

10Success story

Global Fund Partnership Saved 32 Million Lives in 2019

Programs supported by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria have saved 32 million lives, according to a report released today. The Results Report 2019 shows great progress against some of the biggest challenges in the fight against the three diseases, while highlighting new threats.

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11Success story

HIV Treatment for Children to be Produced for Under US$1 a Day

The Indian pharmaceutical company Cipla has announced its commitment to price the ground-breaking new product Quadrimune, a “4‑in‑1” treatment for young children with HIV, at below a dollar a day. Quadrimune is under review by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in children between 3 and 25 kg body weight.

This pleasant-tasting, heat-stable, fixed-dose combination of four antiretrovirals (ARVs) for infants and young children with HIV was developed in partnership by Cipla and the not-for-profit Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) with financial support from Unitaid and other donors.

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© UNICEF / UNI197919 / Schermbrucker

© Gavi

12Success story

Pneumococcal vaccine price drops for third year running

In agreement with Gavi, Pfizer reduces the price of pneumococcal vaccine to US$ 2.90 per dose for Gavi-eligible countries.

Pfizer has reduced the price of its pneumococcal vaccine (PCV) for 73 developing countries by five cents to US$ 2.90 per dose. The price drop, a result of negotiations between Pfizer and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, is Pfizer’s third for its PCV vaccine since January 2017 and is expected to lead to savings to Gavi and developing country governments of US$ 4.1 million this year alone. The reduction is the result of strong ongoing implementation of pneumococcal vaccine national programs and builds on efficiencies achieved through the introduction of the PCV four-dose vial (4-D MDV) as well as stable country volumes over the past three years. In 2017 the price of Pfizer’s PCV single dose vial (SDV) was US$ 3.30 per dose.

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13Success story

Amid Economic Exodus, Left-behind Women Begin to Feel Safe in Venezuela

The economic and political crisis in Venezuela has led around 4.2 million people to exit the country in the last three years. Those left behind –especially people living in the interior of the country – have seen the near shutdown of many public services, including sexual and reproductive health care and services addressing gender-based violence.

The unmet need for contraceptives is estimated at 80 per cent, despite efforts by UNFPA, the government and local organizations to stock primary care clinics throughout Venezuela. And pregnant women often can't get the care they need due to low supplies of drugs, overcrowded facilities and power outages.

To help fill these gaps, UNFPA is supporting workshops to train health workers on sexual and reproductive health issues and how to address gender-based violence.

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© United Nations Population Fund

© United Nations Population Fund

14Success story

How Does UNFPA Prequalify Male Condoms?

UNFPA has managed the Prequalification Programmes for male and female condoms and IUDs since 2005. There are many quality processes condoms go through before reaching the hands of the users.

1.1 billion UNFPA quality-assured condoms went through this quality road! These condoms had the potential to protect 9 million couples against STIs, HIV and unintended pregnancies.

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15Success story

UNOPS Receives Global Recognition for Promoting Supplier Diversity and Inclusion

“Through the UNOPS Possibilities (UP) programme, we’re supporting supplier diversity and helping micro, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) unlock their potential to become successful entrepreneurs.”
Patricia Moser, Former Director, Procurement Group, UNOPS
UNOPS has been awarded the ConnXus Supplier Diversity and Inclusion Award at the 2019 Procurement Leaders World Procurement Awards held in London. The highly competitive category, which included nominees from a range of world-leading private sector companies, recognized UNOPS innovative approach to advancing sustainable procurement, through its UNOPS Possibilities (UP) programme.

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© UNOPS

© Gavi

16Success story

Gavi Receives the 2019 Lasker~Bloomberg Public Service Award

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance has received the prestigious 2019 Lasker~Bloomberg Public Service Award for providing sustained access to childhood vaccines in the world’s poorest countries, saving millions of lives and highlighting the power of immunisation to prevent diseases.

“It is a great honour for us to receive such a prestigious Award,” said Dr Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi the Vaccine Alliance. “Since its creation in 2000 at Davos, Gavi has been making it possible for the world’s most vulnerable children to receive the vaccines they need to live healthy, successful lives. Our collective work as an Alliance has prevented more than 13 million deaths in developing countries while child mortality was halved largely thanks to immunisation. I couldn’t be prouder of what we have accomplished together.”

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17Success story

Can Data Save Lives?

In 2017, despite being preventable and curable, nearly half the world's population was at risk of malaria. Significantly, most of those affected are living in one region. Africa continues to bear over 90% of all malaria cases and deaths worldwide. In Guinea-Bissau, where malaria is the leading cause of death among pregnant women and children under five, a new technology initiative is transforming the malaria response, strengthening the national health system and saving lives.

A partnership between UNDP, the Global Fund, the government and the World Bank is introducing real-time monitoring using mobile tablets to digitize malaria data in 136 health facilities, with the hope of expanding to cover all 169 health facilities in the country by 2020.

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© United Nations Development Programme

© United Nations Development Programme

18Success story

UNDP and Medicines That Save, People Who Inspire

"Quantity doesn't always mean quality," so the saying goes. But everything is relative and, as this story goes to show, quantity can not only guarantee high quality, it also undoubtedly saves lives.

According to the World Health Organization's recommendations, the effectiveness of treating and preventing viral hepatitis is directly related to providing the maximum number of patients with the necessary medicines. In many countries, the price of one course of treatment can cost several thousand dollars. Sometimes even tens of thousands of dollars.
But this doesn’t have to be the case. Effective management and well-thought-out international cooperation can work wonders!

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19Success story

Ghana launches the world's largest vaccine drone delivery network

With support from Gavi, The UPS Foundation and other partners, Zipline drones will serve up to 2,000 health facilities and 12 million people in Ghana.

Zipline, a California-based automated logistics company, will use drones to make on-demand, emergency deliveries of high priority products including emergency and routine vaccines and other health products.

“The ability of the government to supplement routine immunisation on demand will allow us to make sure that there will always be enough life-saving vaccines for every child in Ghana,” said Dr Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. “This is an exciting development for Gavi that is ultimately going to ensure we leave no one behind and help us protect more children living in remote areas against vaccine-preventable diseases,” he added.

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© Gavi

© Gavi

20Success story

Drone Fleet Transports Vaccines to Remote Health Facilities in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Drones are starting to deliver vaccines in the Équateur province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A collaboration including the Ministry of Health, VillageReach and Swoop Aero, and with funding by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, has conducted the first flights which are part of a broader strategy to reach remote populations with vaccines and other medicines called Nouvelle Génération des Chaînes d’Approvisionnement, or NGCA.

Drones represent an additional approach for reaching the last mile - bridging the gap between hard-to-reach populations and the vital health products they need. These flights will give the Government of DRC a clearer picture of how drones could be integrated into the existing health system. The costs and time saved compared to traditional delivery systems will be detailed as well as the changes needed to operationalize this method of transport.

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Resources

© UN Photo/Kibae Park

01Resources

UNDP and Climate Action in 2019

UNDP is committed to “walk the talk” on climate action as part of the UN’s all-agency Greening the Blue initiative.

2019 marked the 10th year of monitoring and reporting UNDP’s global carbon footprint. UNDP offset 70,000 tonnes of CO2 annually, and their global operations have been climate neutral since 2015. 2019 also saw the launch of UNDP’s Greening Moonshot to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2025, and 50% by 2030.

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© United Nations Development Programme

02Resources

Green Public Procurement in the Republic of Korea: A Decade of Progress and Lessons Learned

The Republic of Korea’s Green Public Procurement (GPP) policy (the Act on Promotion of Purchase of Green Products, 2005) is globally recognized as a best practice example. In line with early GPP policies adopted in Europe and North America, it has a strong focus on supporting SCP by developing the market for eco-labelled products through public demand. The report, developed by UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI), illustrates the results of GPP impact measurement in the Republic of Korea and compares Korea's measurement approach to that of Japan, the state of Massachusetts, the Netherlands and the federal state of Berlin.

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03Resources

The Second Edition of the Global Chemicals Outlook by UNEP

“The chemicals industry will more than double by 2030. Whether this is good news or bad news for humanity, really depends on how we manage the challenge.”
Joyce Msuya,
Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and Deputy Executive Director, UN Environment Programme
Chemicals create many benefits.

But they may also affect human health and the environment, if not properly managed.

The Global Chemicals Outlook II – From Legacies to Innovative Solutions: Implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, mandated by the UN Environment Assembly in 2016, seeks to alert policymakers and other stakeholders to the critical role of the sound management of chemicals and waste in sustainable development. It takes stock of global trends as well as progress made and gaps in achieving the global goal to minimize the adverse impacts from chemicals and waste by 2020.

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© Pixabay

© UNICEF / UN0253257 / Moreno Gonzalez

04Resources

UNICEF Supply Annual Report 2018

Procuring supplies for children is not as simple as buying products off the shelf: it requires a complex orchestration of efforts among many partners. The business sector is one key partner that UNICEF has worked closely with over the years to conceptualize, produce and deliver supplies – creating shared value for children, together.
This report highlights many examples of where engagement with businesses has contributed to the health, safety and well-being of children and their families. Shared value can derive from different engagement modalities, such as philanthropic and corporate social responsibility, market shaping, product innovation and strategic procurement.

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05Resources

UNICEF Supply Catalogue

The Supply Catalogue, managed by UNICEF Supply Division, contains specifications for over 2,000 commodities that respond to the needs of children and their families. It is designed to help you identify the most appropriate supplies for your programmes and improve your collaboration with the Supply Division.

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© UNICEF

© Gavi

06Resources

Gavi 5.0: New 2021-2025 High-Level Strategy to Leave No One Behind with Immunisation Approved by Gavi Board

In June 2019, the Gavi Board approved a new five-year strategy (“Gavi 5.0”) with a vision “to leave no one behind with immunisation” and a mission to save lives and protect people’s health by increasing equitable and sustainable use of vaccines.

The new strategy, which is the culmination of 18 months of consultations with stakeholders, analysis and discussion, will be anchored in the Sustainable Development Goals, echoing its driving mission to leave no one behind. To do this it will target four goals to save lives and protect people’s health by increasing the equitable and sustainable use of vaccines.

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Game Changer
Events

© UNICEF

01Event

The Global Forum 2019 in Africa

The 3rd MSD – Manufacturers / Suppliers Annual General Meeting and 2nd Saving Lives Sustainably: Global Forum 2019 in Africa was held on 18-19 July in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The Forum was organised by UNDP and the Medical Stores Department (MSD) Tanzania.

More than 350 delegates from 25 countries attended the Forum to explore the front-running sustainable and ethical consumption and production patterns and the latest public and private innovations on the sustainable manufacturing of health commodities.

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© UN SPHS

© Nairobi Summit

02Event

The Nairobi Summit on ICPD25

2019 marked the 25th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo, where 179 governments adopted a landmark Programme of Action which set out to empower women and girls for their sake, and for the benefit of their families, communities and nations.

The Summit took an integrated approach, covering five themes and highlighting the power of gender equality, youth leadership, political and community leadership, innovation and data, and partnerships to accelerate progress throughout.

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03Event

World Water Week 2019

Hosted and organized by Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), the theme of World Water Week 2019 was Water for Society: Including All. The event attracted a record number of 4,000 participants from 138 countries.

In an effort to combat antibiotic resistance, SIWI joined forces with UNDP, Centrient Pharmaceuticals and Recipharm to launch Reducing Emissions from Antibiotics Production (REAP). REAP was presented at the World Water Week 2019 to support the pharmaceutical sector’s shift to more sustainable production practices.

REAP was followed by the launch of a new collaboration platform, Responsible Antibiotics Manufacturing Platform (RAMP), which aims to fight against antibiotic resistance by promoting collaboration between pioneers in the field of sustainable public procurement and the pharmaceutical industry.

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© Mikael Ullén

© GAVI/2012/Ryan Youngblood

04Event

2019 Joint WHO-UNICEF-UNFPA meeting with manufacturers and suppliers

Each year, WHO, together with UNICEF and UNFPA, holds a four-day meeting for manufacturers of medicines, vaccines, in vitro diagnostics (IVDs), reproductive health and vector control products to discuss issues around the production and supply of quality products needed for vulnerable populations.

The 2019 joint UNICEF-UNFPA-WHO meeting with manufacturers and suppliers took place at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark from 2 to 5 December 2019. The theme of the 2019 joint meeting was, “Improving the Response of Global Public Health in a Fast-Changing World”, recognizing that while much has been achieved, much remains to be achieved, and needs to be achieved with greater speed and efficiency.

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05Event

The Economist Antimicrobial Resistance Summit

The world is facing an imminent crisis of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). A growing range of disease-causing bacteria are proving difficult to treat; some are no longer treatable, even with the last line of antibiotic defences. In a classic case of market failure, ageing antibiotics that are increasingly less effective are not being replaced by new ones.

Meanwhile, resistance is accelerating through the misuse and abuse of antibiotics—in humans, animals and the environment. The Antimicrobial Resistance Summit, held in London on 26 March 2019, asked why the global call to action on such a critical public good is now sputtering, and how renewed energy and momentum might be unlocked in the global fight against AMR.

Dr. Mandeep Dhaliwal, Director of UNDP HIV Health and Development Team, spoke at the Summit about effective global campaigns on HIV/AIDS, TB, malaria and non-communicable diseases to develop a more successful approach to raising awareness of AMR.

© The Economist

SPHS Communications Statistics

4,974,046
Total # of People Reached
Network distribution
67%
Suppliers + Manufacturers
13%
Technical Experts
10%
Organizations Governmental
6%
Other
4%
Academia
Areas of expertise of our network
  • 15% Waste management
  • 14% Resource Efficiency
  • 14% Energy
  • 14% Medical Products
  • 10% Procurement
  • 10% Water
  • 7% Chemicals
  • 6% Packaging
  • 5% Transportation
  • 2% Gender Equality
  • 2% Human & Labor Rights
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15,108,197
Total # of Media Impressions
95%
of Total Network Engagement
4 out of 5
Visitors Were New to the Platform
6 min
Average Time Spent Per Visit
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