ABSTRACT
The various Covid-19-related closures in Gabon were an opportune time to assess the supply system of the markets in the capital Libreville. As local production is relatively low, the closure of the borders has exacerbated food supply difficulties, especially for the economically weak population living in under-integrated neighbourhoods. This problem, which was initially caused by the restriction of travel and the cessation of informal activities and ‘petty jobs', was then aggravated by the shortage or insufficiency of food and agricultural products, which led to a rise in prices. The closure of the borders, which has led to low market supply, shows the need for sustained local production. The purpose of this analysis is to assess the food situation of economically weak Librevillians during Covid-19, to draw up an inventory of urban and peri-urban agriculture in Libreville in order to propose some solutions to the insufficient supply of local products, with the aim of increasing their availability and accessibility via short circuits for a sustainable food system. This study was based on semi-direct surveys carried out in the field (2021), a study by Edou Edou (IGAD, 2012) and oriented documentation. © 2022 Societe Geographique de Liege. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
(1) Background: Any disturbance in the pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC) can disrupt the supply of medicines and affect the efficiency of health systems. Due to shortages in the global pharma supply chain over the past few years and the complex nature of free trade and its limitations when confronted by a major global health and humanitarian crisis, many countries have taken steps to mitigate the risks of disruption, including, for example, recommending the adoption of a plus one diversification approach, increasing safety stock, and nationalizing the medical supply chains. (2) Objective: To scope findings in the academic literature related to decision criteria to guide national policy decisions for the "Partial Nationalization of Pharmaceutical Supply Chain” (PNPSC) from the viewpoints of the three main stakeholders: industry, payers (government and health insurance), and patients. (3) Methods: These consist of a scoping review of the peer-reviewed literature. (4) Results: A total of 115 studies were included. For local manufacturing decisions, five criteria and 15 sub-criteria were identified. Weighting, decision-making, risk assessment, and forecasting were the main data analysis tools applied;(5) Conclusions: The findings could serve as a baseline for constructing PNPSC frameworks after careful adaptation to the local context.
ABSTRACT
In this paper, a model-based decision-making framework for the design of localized networked production systems under largescale disruptions is developed. The framework consists of optimization and agent-based simulation models that run successively in an iterative manner, gradually improving the performance of the perceived system. The framework integrates uncertainty, provides decisions at different decision-making levels and embeds an algorithm that allows for communication between demand nodes and production sites once inventory shortages occur. The framework has been applied on a case study for the design of localized production and distribution networks, powered by additive manufacturing (AM), in South East England during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. Results revealed that implementing the framework indeed results in performance improvements to AM-powered production networks, particularly with regards to inventory shortages and lead time. © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.