Lasting value from new logistics lanes

The equitable distribution of Covid vaccines made headlines during the pandemic, and the air freight community had a vital role to play.
UPS Healthcare has worked with organisations such as Gavi and COVAX to deliver doses to underserved countries and donate its capabilities, freezer farms and dry ice production, as well as offering assistance for vaccine distribution. To do so, UPS mapped the 500 or so global trade lanes it used for delivery, which were more complex and longer than the industry had been used to, Cromb notes.
Late last year, UPS Healthcare delivered 330,000 vaccines, largely by drone, to rural clinics in Ghana, and recently delivered more than a million vaccine doses in Nigeria. It has also donated over 200 ultra-cold freezer units to underserved populations in Africa, Europe and elsewhere.
Plus, last July, The UPS Foundation committed to delivering 13.8 million Covid-19 vaccines to Indonesia, and in May 2022 UPS Healthcare announced a partnership with Swoop Aero and VillageReach to scale up drone operations across Malawi. This project will benefit up to 3 million people in remote, hard-to-reach areas by providing vaccine distribution support alongside other medical services.
“Importantly, these new trade lanes will play a key role in the delivery of next-generation healthcare treatments to these areas, providing lasting value for these communities,” Cromb points out.