News

We are proud to share that we recently passed our ISO 14001 verification audit without any non-conformities. We are looking forward to continue our sustainability journey and to keep building sustainable value chains together with our dedicated partners.

IDA Foundation and Solvoz partner to transform the medical procurement and supply chain landscape in and for LMICs, by introducing a new online marketplace for NCD medicines and medical supplies.

In our pursuit of global health impact, IDA Foundation (IDA) acknowledges the importance of responsible travel practices. In line with our (ISO14001-certified) Environmental Management System, IDA has looked at all of its environmental impacts and identified ways in which we can minimise our footprint.

The need for emergency assistance in Ukraine remains high and IDA Foundation is dedicated to provide essential health goods to support local health systems. Recently we shipped medicines to our customer Abej Nationale, who are committed to helping the people of Ukraine. We are happy to see our products in the field, knowing they are reaching those who need it most. Watch the video below to see the delivery of our products!

Since 2019 we have been providing free LinkedIn Learning accounts to our employees, allowing them to allocate time during work for their professional development. We are happy to see that these licenses are being used frequently, and even led to being nominated for a LinkedIn Talent Award over the past year. The LinkedIn Talent Awards celebrates teams around the world who are innovating, learning, and developing their skills for the future.

From 13-15 March, IDA Foundation will be present at DIHAD (Dubai International Humanitarian Aid & Development) conference and exhibition. Meet us at booth #13 for a conversation or plan a meeting with us through your IDA representative.

Last week, on February the 6th, a series of large devastating earthquakes struck the south-eastern part of Türkiye and north-western part of Syria, causing widespread destruction, injury and death. The disastrous impact of the earthquakes left millions of victims in urgent need of water, food, shelter and medical attention. Besides that, the earthquake had a significant impact on the existing infrastructure and continues to delay the delivery of medical aid in the affected areas.

After almost 33 years of service Mr. Shreekrishna (Shree) Rajwade, our General Manager of the IDA Foundation office in Mumbai, is retiring today. From 2023 onwards, we welcome Beena Singh as the new General Manager of the Mumbai office alongside her duties as HR director. Activities related to supplier management and purchase are covered by the relevant teams in Mumbai, who have been well prepared for these responsibilities over the past years by Shree.

Last month, our QA Director Bart van Osch and Bincy Mathew, our Pharmacist for IDA MEA, paid a visit to the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP, United Arab Emirates) in Dubai. This visit was an opportunity to strengthen the relationship between the MOHAP UAE and IDA Foundation, supporting our mutual mission to bridge gaps in access to medicines and to serve the people that need it most.

Last week marked the 50th Anniversary of IDA. Following a successful event with customers and partners in Amsterdam in September, last week, we brought together IDA suppliers, employees, and other partners at our Mumbai supplier summit and celebration on November 25th. IDA Foundation’s Wendy Eggen and Shree Rajwade acknowledged that our Indian suppliers have played a crucial role in making quality healthcare affordable over the past decades, by supplying quality generic medicines and medical supplies.

Today we would like to give some attention to our customer International Medical Corps (IMC) by discussing a recent shipment to Afghanistan packed with IDA emergency health products.

Today, 21 November 2022, marks our official 50th anniversary. With this milestone we look back at 50 years of bridging the gap in access to medicines and medical supplies.

From 6-18 November, global leaders are gathering in Sharm El-Sheikh, to discuss climate change; one of the largest issues the world is currently facing. WHO foresees that between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause around 250.000 additional deaths per year from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea, and heat stress only.

We are happy to announce that IDA Foundation has received ISO 14001:2015 certification for our Environmental Management System (EMS), applying to our sales, procurement, distribution of medicinal products and medical supplies, and value-added services.

Through our partnership with Solvoz, we have explored ways in which the use and disposal of malaria Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) can be made more sustainable. The outcomes of this study are now available.

IDA Foundation has recently joined the UN Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs), strengthening our commitment and progress to gender equality. The WEPs are a shared initiative of UN Global Compact (of which IDA Foundation has been a participant since 2018) and UN Women.

Last year we added heat-stable carbetocin (HSC) to our Reproductive-, Maternal-, Newborn-, and Child-Health (RMNCH) portfolio. HSC is a uterotonic, that is more stable in warm and humid climates than its alternative oxytocin and is therefore better able to prevent post-partum haemorrhage (PPH) caused by post-partum uterine atony.

The past years we have been expanding our Reproductive-, Maternal-, Newborn-, and Child-Health (RMNCH) portfolio. The latest additions to the portfolio are related to breastfeeding and are meant to support and assist mothers when their children have difficulty with latching on to the nipple or have other problems related to feeding.

This past month IDA Foundation has joined forces with i+solutions and other parties to ensure swift emergency shipments to Ukraine. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion in Ukraine four months ago, we have supported several initiatives to send emergency goods and medical relief products to Ukraine and neighbouring countries.

Strengthened local capacity is one of IDA’s long-term strategic goals. This goal is worked on through our ambition to source more products from manufacturers in low- and middle-income countries, where the demand for IDA’s essential health products is greatest.

Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a group of infections that are extremely rare or occur in areas of extreme poverty where people have little protection from the insects or animals that carry disease. Treatment for these conditions (e.g., worm infections) are often overlooked by commercial pharmaceutical companies and as a result, treatment availability can be limited. 

The past few months, the impact of both the war in Ukraine and the effects of new COVID lockdowns in China have become more apparent. In this update we give you an insight into the current situation and its effects on the global freight market.

Despite the ongoing hostilities, IDA Foundation is able to provide transport solutions into Ukraine together with its freight partners. Air & sea solutions continue to be impossible, but solutions by road are available upon request. Available solutions are dependent on the ever-changing local situation, we would advise our clients to keep in close contact with their sales representative in case of any questions.

On behalf of Stop TB Partnership’s Global Drug Facility (GDF), IDA Foundation (IDA), the GDF’s contracted procurement agent, invites all eligible suppliers to submit bids for ITB-IDA/GDF-MED/2022/1, for the supply of antituberculosis (TB) medicines.

Around the world, many women lack access to essential nutrition during pregnancy from their diets only. The right nutrition during pregnancy is essential as the mother’s health is better safeguarded, and her child is more likely to have a good start in life. In line with our mission, and with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3, IDA Foundation supports reproductive, maternal and child health, by supplying a broad range of products related to family planning, healthy pregnancies and safe births.

The devastating impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine has become increasingly clear, and many of our customers (NGOs / humanitarian organisations) are responding to support the people both in Ukraine and those fleeing Ukraine to the surrounding countries with essential medical goods.

All regular transport to and from Ukraine has come to a stop because of the Russian invasion into Ukraine. This means that (regular) air, sea, and road transport has come to a standstill and borders to Ukraine are mostly closed for normal traffic, with only Ukrainian drivers being allowed to cross the border.

Every year IDA publishes the Product Indicator – a booklet providing an overview of the products we supply, ranging from essential medicines for noncommunicable and infectious diseases, to medical supplies and emergency response goods. The medicines listed in the Product Indicator are grouped according to the WHO classification of Essential Medicines (EML). All medicines on the EML satisfy the minimum requirements for priority healthcare needs of the population, and are selected according to public health relevance, evidence of efficacy and safety and comparative cost-effectiveness.

IDA Foundation and Momentum Wheels for Humanity, with the generous support of the United States Agency for International Development, are collaborating to provide equitable access to quality wheelchairs so that people with mobility impairments in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have the opportunity to live healthy, productive and independent lives. 

IDA Foundation and Macro-Eyes today announced a partnership to increase supply chain efficiency using data insights generated by STRIATA: Macro-Eyes software for precision matching supply to demand. The global health sector has been impacted heavily by the COVID-19 pandemic, and getting the most essential medicines and health supplies to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has become even more challenging. Globally, lead times have increased significantly since the onset of the pandemic.

This month, our QA Director Michiel de Goeje retired after 34 years of service at IDA Foundation. Bart van Osch, IDA’s new QA Director, has been working alongside Michiel for the past year, to ensure a thorough handover of responsibilities.

21 November 2021 marks 49 years of bridging the gap in access to medicines. This means that our 50th year of operations has started, and in one year, we will be celebrating IDA Foundation's 50th anniversary!

According to WHO, despite significant advances in driving down child mortality rates in recent decades, almost 5.2 million children under five still die every year from preventable and treatable diseases, most of whom are in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Leading causes are (pre-term) birth complications as well as preventable and/or treatable health issues such as malaria and measles.

The World Health Organization published the latest edition of its Model Lists of Essential Medicines (EML) and Essential Medicines for Children last week, which include new treatments for various cancers, insulin analogues and new oral medicines for diabetes, new medicines to assist people who want to stop smoking, and new antimicrobials to treat serious bacterial and fungal infections.

A deteriorating humanitarian situation in Afghanistan means that an estimated 18 million people are currently in need of aid. Working closely with our customers, this week IDA will be shipping another 1000 IEHK (kits) from our warehouse in Tilburg, and over 1500 IEHK from our kitting facility in Dubai have already arrived. Aside from emergency kits, IDA also shipped 120 Pediatric Severe Acute Malnutrition (PED-SAM) kits, containing essential oral- and injectable- medication to treat young children who are suffering from medical complications caused by severe acute malnutrition. The warehouse teams are working 24/7 to make sure these essential supplies are reach Afghanistan - and those in need- as soon as possible.

IDA Foundation has partnered with Ferring Pharmaceuticals, who have developed heat-stable carbetocin (HSC), a product that can reduce the risk of PPH. HSC is more resistant against higher temperatures and increased humidity compared to oxytocin, making it very suitable for use in low- and middle-income countries. HSC is now being used in clinical practice for the first time in healthcare settings in India - with more LMICs following soon.

Last week, IDA Foundation supplied 228 pallets of kits to Afghanistan for WHO. The kits, which contain medical supplies and essential medicines, were loaded on two charter flights from our warehouse in Dubai. The WHO is working closely together with the Ministry of Public Health to distribute these supplies to health care facilities across the country.

At IDA Foundation we are committed to supporting health organisations in LMICs with the roll-out of vaccination programmes. We have already received our first orders, and we hope to supply vaccination-related products to many more customers. To facilitate and support those customers, we have created an overview of all the products needed for vaccination. By grouping these different items in one factsheet we hope to ease the ordering process.

In many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), women often lack access to the right nutrients during pregnancy. Proper nutrition during pregnancy is essential for a healthy mother and for a healthy start of life for every newborn child. In line with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3, IDA Foundation aims to support both maternal- and child-health, by supplying a broad range of products related to family planning, healthy pregnancies and safe births.

India is slowly recovering from a severe and devastating second COVID-19 wave, during which India reported 414.188 daily new cases at its highest peak on 7 May (WHO, 2021). Cities such as Mumbai in the state of Maharashtra have been hit especially hard by this wave.

IDA Foundation, on behalf of the Stop TB Partnership/The Global Drug Facility (GDF), is today launching an Invitation to Bid (ITB) for the supply of Ethambutol 100mg dispersible tablets for the treatment of drug-sensitive forms of tuberculosis.

Together with our external design agency, we have created a new animated kitting video. This video explains the complex process at IDA’s kitting facility in Dubai step by step.

One year into the global COVID-19 pandemic, much of the global focus is currently going to vaccination rollouts, but treatment options are still limited. However, dexamethasone, an essential medicine which has been around for decades (listed by WHO since 1977) – is one of the few approved treatments for severe and critically ill COVID-19 patients.

New partnership broadens access to oncology treatments across Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Western Pacific

Since the early start of the pandemic we have been supplying PPE and other urgent supplies to countries worldwide, and we have seen the effects of the unforeseen costs that come with it. Budgets need to be reassessed and customers must find a balance between products required and increased transport costs.

IDA Foundation, on behalf of the Stop TB Partnership/The Global Drug Facility (GDF), is today launching an Invitation to Bid (ITB) for the supply of ANTI-TUBERCULOSIS MEDICINES AND RELATED PRODUCTS for the treatment of DRUG-RESISTANT FORMS of tuberculosis to eligible manufacturers.

In this pandemic, QA remains vital as always, as we found ways to ensure continued supply of essential (PPE) products. As ADB's Jesper Pedersen commented: “The best practice for supply chain responsiveness and resiliency is to perform key aspects of quality assurance upfront to ensure parties involved in the manufacture of goods adhere to the applicable national or international standards of the items being produced. Quality control is then handled upon physical inspection of the goods to ensure the delivered items meet the agreed standards. This is exactly what we have seen so far in our relationship with IDA – the right goods, delivered at the right time, and to the agreed standard.”

On Monday July 6, Johnson & Johnson announced a price reduction of the anti-tuberculosis medicine bedaquiline, for low- and middle-income countries. Thanks to the support of USAID and the Global Fund, this price reduction could be achieved. The price dropped from $400 to $340 for a six-month treatment regimen.

IDA’s has published its first Communication on Engagement (CoE) as a participant in the UN Global Compact.

With corona virus (COVID-19) spreading globally, IDA Foundation is closely monitoring the developments to ensure we are able to respond to any changes. This past week, we were glad to support the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) by supplying medical goods to be used in the corona virus response in China.