Ethiopia Advances Health Procurement Reform with Multi-Vendor Sourcing Strategy

July 08, 2025

Ethiopia Advances Health Procurement Reform with Multi-Vendor Sourcing Strategy

A Strategic Shift Toward Sustainability through Public Private Partnership

In a bold step toward modernizing Ethiopia’s health supply chain, the Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Supply Service (EPSS), under the leadership of the Ministry of Health (MOH), has launched a transformative Multi-Vendor Sourcing (MVS) Strategy. This innovative approach is designed to streamline procurement, reduce costs, and ensure the uninterrupted availability of essential medicines and health program commodities—particularly those critical to maternal and child health—across the country.

The MVS Strategy is a cornerstone of the broader reform agenda outlined in EPSS Proclamation No. 1354/2024 and the newly endorsed Pharmaceutical Procurement Directive No. 1066/2025, both of which are designed to rethink and redesign Ethiopia’s national healthcare supply chains for greater efficiency, transparency, and self-reliance.

VMS Participants
Participants of the Multi-Vendor Sourcing Strategy costing workshop engage in group discussions. Adama, Ethiopia, June 22, 2025. Photo Credit: Angelo Tesfalem

The strategy introduces a hybrid procurement model that combines centralized vendor selection and pricing control with decentralized contracting at the health facility level. This dual approach is expected to enhance responsiveness, improve efficiency, and maintain high standards of quality and cost control.

With support from the USAID Supply Chain Strengthening (SCS) Activity, led by Management Sciences for Health (MSH), the MVS strategy has been refined through comprehensive costing exercise. This analysis, carried out during a technical workshop held in Adama, Oromia region from June 21–25, 2025, estimated the financial requirements for implementing the strategy over the next three years—an essential step in ensuring its feasibility and long-term sustainability.

The project deployed relevant technical experts to the workshop, who facilitated sessions, provided costing guidance, and supported discussions on operationalizing the strategy at both national and sub-national levels. Their contribution helped foster alignment among stakeholders around a shared vision for a more resilient and accountable supply chain.

Dr. Degafa Uma, Senior Supply Chain Advisor at EPSS
Dr. Degafa Uma, Senior Supply Chain Advisor at EPSS

Dr. Degefa also underscored the importance of robust costing and resource mobilization for successful rollout and thanked USAID and the SCS Activity for their continued partnership in advancing EPSS’s supply chain reform agenda.

The MVS strategy represents a significant milestone in Ethiopia’s journey toward a transparent, self-reliant, and sustainable health system—ensuring life-saving medicines are consistently available, even in the most remote communities.