Tuesday has been a long day, starting at 07.15, when we convened in the hotel lobby in order to pack our luggage and take off to Entebbe. Thanks to police escort we came in time for our meetings at either National Medical Store, or the UN Service Center.
The NMS is responsible for procuring, storing and distributing medicines and medical supplies to public health facilities in the whole country. We learnt about the system for open procurement and procurement from a list of prequalified suppliers. That list will be updated in June 2016, so if you’re interested in being on the list, please check NMS website from January and onwards, as more information will be posted there. Before leaving we got a tour of the warehouses, where the shelves filled with boxes reached impressive heights.
The UN Service Center was the destination for the other group. There we got detailed information on the procurement process for the UN system. The Service Center in Entebbe is only responsible for procurement to the peacekeeping operations. Other procurement, including for healthcare, is done in New York. Still, the Entebbe Service Center makes purchases worth 17 billion usd in a year – however, only 10 million usd of those are from Swedish companies – clearly room for improvement!
After these two meetings in Entebbe, we were escorted to the airport for check-in and take-off with RwandAir to Kigali. Arriving at the airport, we were met by Chargé d’Affaires Maria Håkansson, and taken by bus to a hotel near the Swedish Embassy. Lunch was combined with a meeting with representatives from WHO and UNFPA (the UN Population Fund), for general information on the Rwandan health system and recent results, with a focus on maternal health. Rwanda is one of 9 countries that have managed to meet with the Millennium Development Goals within maternal health, but the maternal mortality rate is still high at 210 deaths per 100,000 births. We also discussed the possibilities for the companies’ solutions to contribute to health care in Rwanda. In terms of opportunities for Swedish private sector within health care, broad infrastructure, increased access and quality of health care services, pharmaceuticals and financing were identified, just as training and education.
The last meeting of the day was at the Ministry of Health and with the Minister herself, Dr. Agnes Binagwaho and some of her staff. The State Secretary spoke about the relations between our two countries, and how there has been an increased interest in Rwanda from the Swedish private sector. The Minister thanked the delegation for coming once again and wanted to hear what the results of last year’s trip were, for those companies who participated at that time. She was interested to learn more about the solutions offered by our companies, and just as before, she gave advice on who to contact and how to follow-up. Dr. Binagwaho ended by saying that this is the beginning for taking off for Rwanda, so it’s a good time for the delegation to come.
The day was rounded off by a reception in the beautiful garden of the Chargé d’Affaires. About sixty persons mingled, made contacts and discussed various aspects of health care. It’s been a long day filled with interesting meetings – and more to come tomorrow!
The NMS is responsible for procuring, storing and distributing medicines and medical supplies to public health facilities in the whole country. We learnt about the system for open procurement and procurement from a list of prequalified suppliers. That list will be updated in June 2016, so if you’re interested in being on the list, please check NMS website from January and onwards, as more information will be posted there. Before leaving we got a tour of the warehouses, where the shelves filled with boxes reached impressive heights.
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| Anna and Mikaela at National Medical Store |
The UN Service Center was the destination for the other group. There we got detailed information on the procurement process for the UN system. The Service Center in Entebbe is only responsible for procurement to the peacekeeping operations. Other procurement, including for healthcare, is done in New York. Still, the Entebbe Service Center makes purchases worth 17 billion usd in a year – however, only 10 million usd of those are from Swedish companies – clearly room for improvement!
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| Lunch with presentations from WHO and UNFPA |
After these two meetings in Entebbe, we were escorted to the airport for check-in and take-off with RwandAir to Kigali. Arriving at the airport, we were met by Chargé d’Affaires Maria Håkansson, and taken by bus to a hotel near the Swedish Embassy. Lunch was combined with a meeting with representatives from WHO and UNFPA (the UN Population Fund), for general information on the Rwandan health system and recent results, with a focus on maternal health. Rwanda is one of 9 countries that have managed to meet with the Millennium Development Goals within maternal health, but the maternal mortality rate is still high at 210 deaths per 100,000 births. We also discussed the possibilities for the companies’ solutions to contribute to health care in Rwanda. In terms of opportunities for Swedish private sector within health care, broad infrastructure, increased access and quality of health care services, pharmaceuticals and financing were identified, just as training and education.
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| The delegation outside the Ministry of Health |
The last meeting of the day was at the Ministry of Health and with the Minister herself, Dr. Agnes Binagwaho and some of her staff. The State Secretary spoke about the relations between our two countries, and how there has been an increased interest in Rwanda from the Swedish private sector. The Minister thanked the delegation for coming once again and wanted to hear what the results of last year’s trip were, for those companies who participated at that time. She was interested to learn more about the solutions offered by our companies, and just as before, she gave advice on who to contact and how to follow-up. Dr. Binagwaho ended by saying that this is the beginning for taking off for Rwanda, so it’s a good time for the delegation to come.
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| Meeting with Minister Binagwaho and staff |
The day was rounded off by a reception in the beautiful garden of the Chargé d’Affaires. About sixty persons mingled, made contacts and discussed various aspects of health care. It’s been a long day filled with interesting meetings – and more to come tomorrow!
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| View from the MoH Building |
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