Amsterdam, 13 December 2021 – 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.

By combining IDA Foundation’s global health supply chain network with Macro-Eyes’ ability to optimise systems where data and infrastructure is lacking, the partnership aims to improve supply chains. IDA and Macro-Eyes will collaborate on an initial engagement focused on the distribution of malaria bed nets to be distributed across Africa. The collaboration will aim to optimise distribution across a network of ports and transport modalities, including shipping, warehouses, railway transport and/or trucking, demonstrating efficacy within Procurement Services. The collaboration between IDA and Macro-Eyes will demonstrate how the addition of AI-powered demand forecasts and enhanced visibility and network optimisation – delivered by STRIATA - can increase the efficacy and efficiency of global shipping and logistics.

Ultimately, the objective is to optimise the shipping and routing of a broader range of essential health commodities to low- and middle-income countries. The end product will optimise processes for departure and arrival ports around the globe, improve the integration of multi-modal transport availability, build efficiency in warehousing costs and space, increase human resource capacity within the logistics network, improve the likelihood of capacity on ocean carriers, and predict the trajectory of cost and capacity in upcoming delivery periods.

IDA Foundation's CEO Wendy Eggen is positive about this pilot and partnership: “We look forward to working together with such an innovative organisation, and are confident this will result in improved lead times, a lower environmental footprint and higher impact when it comes to number of people that we reach in a certain amount of time.” Harm Veerkamp, our Director Procurement Services, emphasises that: "This collaboration fits perfectly in our journey for procurement, PSA excellence and enhancing customer intimacy, as the pilot allows us to add resilience and agility into our supply chain." 

Macro-Eyes' CEO Benjamin Fels views the application of Macro-Eyes technology to the IDA supply chain network as a clinical trial for the next, critical phase of global logistics optimisation: “Ocean freight is the medium of global trade – the world depends upon vessels and ports to access life-saving health commodities. The system is strained. We believe that by deploying proven technology to predict what will happen next across networks of trade and logistics, we can make the present more predictable – and ensure access to healthcare.”

About IDA Foundation

IDA Foundation is an independent social enterprise providing medicines and medical goods to healthcare organisations worldwide, at the best price possible. We recognise that in today's world, essential health products remain out of reach for too many people. IDA bridges those gaps so that healthcare providers have access to quality products at a fair price. We distribute over 3000 different health products to customers and partners in over 130 countries. We work with international and local NGOs, large funding organisations, ministries of health and central medical stores, and smaller mission hospitals. Headquartered in Amsterdam, we are a global organisation with 225 employees representing around 30 nationalities. We have offices in India, China and Nigeria, warehouses in Dubai (UAE) and Tilburg (NL), as well as representative agents in over 30 countries. We pride ourselves on our professional, diverse and multicultural team, which is passionate about our mission.

About Macro-Eyes

Macro-Eyes is a venture-backed technology company focused on making crucial supply chains proactive. We work in environments with little conventional data (sometimes none at all) and with some of the most sophisticated users of technology in the world. We have deployed STRIATA at leading academic health centers and within one of the largest health systems in the world. Our technology works for the governments of Sierra Leone, DRC, Côte d'Ivoire, Tanzania, Mozambique, Nigeria, and for the United States government. We work with enterprise customers globally, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, USAID, and the US Department of Defense. For more information on Macro-Eyes visit their website.