Health and Humanitarian Logistics 2025: The Future of Emergency Response
Panelist Stella Kamwasir – National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) Regional Director, Arasa Vina Truphena –MSF Wash Manager, Fred Oluoch – Director of Public Health, Kisumu County and Facilitator: Agayo Ogambi – CEO Shipper Council of East Africa
The Health and Humanitarian Logistics (HHL) 2025 Conference, held at the Sarit Expo Centre, brought together humanitarian supply chain leaders, policymakers, and innovators to discuss the future of emergency logistics. With 142+ crises affecting Africa, the need for efficient, technology-driven, and resilient supply chains has never been greater.
The discussions centred on digital transformation, supply chain risk management, and sustainability—highlighting groundbreaking solutions to enhance last-mile delivery, optimize medical supply chains, and strengthen emergency preparedness.
The Urgency of Strengthening Humanitarian Logistics
The conference started with insights from the Kenya Ministry of Health, highlighting the urgent need for robust, transparent, and adaptive health supply chains. The discussions set the stage for key innovations driving humanitarian logistics forward.
1. Digital Innovation: Reshaping Emergency Supply Chains
UNICEF’s Digital Centre of Excellence transforms humanitarian logistics with real-time tracking, predictive analytics, and AI-powered decision-making, ensuring critical supplies reach those in need faster and more efficiently. Safaricom’s Stock Visibility Solutions (SVS) is leveraging mobile technology and AI to prevent stockouts, automate replenishment, and improve supply chain transparency. eVouchers are emerging as a game-changer for humanitarian aid, enabling cashless, accountable, and dignified distribution of emergency supplies, particularly in WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) programs.
2. Strengthening National Emergency Supply Chains
Kenya’s Ministry of Health emphasized the critical role of Public Health Emergency Operation Centers (PHEOC) in coordinating disaster response, managing national stockpiles, and improving forecasting accuracy. A shift towards local manufacturing and end-to-end supply chain visibility was highlighted as essential for reducing dependency on external suppliers and strengthening Africa’s health resilience, with Revital and Reltex taking the lead, and today, they export vaccines and tarpaulins to other countries in need. CHMP’s quality assurance framework ensures compliance with WHO standards, preventing substandard and falsified medical products from entering humanitarian supply chains.
3. Emerging Technologies: The Future of Humanitarian Logistics
Drones, AI-driven logistics, and the Internet of Production (IoP) are revolutionizing last-mile delivery, particularly in remote and conflict-affected regions.
Maersk’s panel on supply chain risk management illuminated strategies for mitigating disruptions, including those caused by geopolitical events like the Red Sea crisis. Reltex advocated for circular economy solutions, stressing the need for sustainable humanitarian relief materials—especially shelter and tarpaulin solutions. In the afternoon, some delegates visited Reltex, where I was impressed by their efficient tarpaulin production process. However, my highlight was seeing their recycling process, where nothing goes to waste. Beyond their commitment to sustainability, I also observed their strong work ethic and a positive, employee-friendly environment, making it an inspiring example of responsible manufacturing in humanitarian logistics.
4. Sustainability & Waste Management in Humanitarian Logistics
Medical waste management remains a critical challenge, with discussions on reverse logistics, ethical disposal, and reducing supply chain carbon footprints.
Organizations are actively exploring circular economy models, emphasizing the need to reduce long-term supply chain waste and optimize resource utilization.
The Road Ahead: Smarter, More Resilient Humanitarian Logistics
HLA Conference Attendee’s Group Photo
The HHL 2025 Conference underscored the need for stronger collaboration between public, private, and humanitarian sectors to build resilient, sustainable, and technology-driven supply chains. With advancements in AI, blockchain, predictive analytics, and digital coordination, the future of humanitarian logistics is becoming more innovative, faster, and more effective.
As a supply chain professional, I firmly believe that technology, local solutions, and data-driven decision-making are essential to ensuring life-saving supplies reach the people who need them—precisely when they need them. – Pamela Steele, CEO PSA
We are committed to driving this transformation—partnering with global actors to build supply chain systems that are efficient, sustainable, and crisis-ready.
Join us in shaping the future of humanitarian logistics!