In early October, the world witnessed yet another catastrophe that devastated the poorest country in the Americas: Hurricane Matthew hit Haiti with winds of up to 230 km/h, leaving a trail of destruction in the country that was still recovering from the devastating earthquake of 2010. Added to more than 800 fatalities, the hurricane left Haiti in a situation of total calamity. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Program (WFP), 1,4 million Haitians needed food assistance and at least 800 people were in immediate need of this type of assistance. at the end of October. In addition, hundreds of cases of cholera affected Haitians due to problems with access to clean water and medicine.
Figure 1 – According to estimates, the Grand Anse region of Haiti had 90% of its homes destroyed
Source: EU Delegation to the Republic of Haiti
In response to the Haitian catastrophe, the world rallied to Haiti's aid. Doctors without Borders, UN and Unicef are some examples of large humanitarian organizations that work in the most affected places, whether providing medical services, taking supplies or helping children with more immediate needs. But between the donations made by people in various parts of the world and the work and help on-site visit, a complex logistical operation is located.
Conceptually, logistics in crisis situations is an area of research in logistics applicable in situations of disasters and catastrophes, in which the strategic objectives of the supply chain, classically focused on reducing operating costs and investments together with improving the level of of service, change focus. In the emergency context, the aim is to maximize the level of service with the shortest possible delivery times. A line of research in logistics in crisis situations, started in 2009 at the Instituto Coppead de Administração, combines concepts of humanitarian logistics with those of military and business logistics. Some of its concepts and frameworks are well explained in articles developed by University of Tennessee professor Alexandre Rodrigues, separated into part 1 e part 2, which reading is suggested for deepening on the subject.
The Red Cross, one of the largest humanitarian movements in the world, has its own logistical service, the GLS (Global Logistics Service), whose main mission is to provide humanitarian logistical services to the Red Cross service network and other non-profit organizations. for profit and governments. In order to act effectively and efficiently, GLS has teams of logistical specialists spread across 5 units around the world, bringing the units closer to the service locations, which reduced the delivery time of a basic family kit (containing items such as a blanket and feeding utensils) by 75%. GLS also has consolidated purchasing power, which allows it to purchase large lots at competitive prices. Its global structure also offers flexibility to meet the most diverse emergency situations. Also, GLS has strategic partnerships that generate mutual cooperation to meet demand, such as, for example, air transport carried out in partnership with the Airbus Corporate Foundation. In summary, the GLS demonstrates the following core competencies:
Non-profit operation + consolidated purchasing power = reduced costs in purchasing supplies, and
Service network + ability to mobilize resources = shorter service times
Reduced costs together with short service times allow GLS to provide high levels of service, in line with the needs of such situations. If you want to help the Haitian victims of Hurricane Matthew, the official websites of the main humanitarian organizations in the world are good ways to make donations. We rely on the logistics that serve them so that the donations made are transformed into effective humanitarian actions and that the activities of these organizations help in the reconstruction of the country.
Doctors Without Borders: http://www.msf.org.br/
UNICEF: http://www.unicef.org.br/
Red Cross: http://www.ifrc.org/en/
References:
<http://www.ifrc.org/en/what-we-do/logistics/>
<https://ilos.com.br/web/logistica-em-situacoes-de-crise-parte-1/>
<https://nacoesunidas.org/haiti-onu-pede-resposta-robusta-para-enfrentar-cenario-pos-furacao-matthew/>
Henry Alvarenga
He has been working in consultancy for 7 years, with experience in more than 20 Demand Planning and S&OP projects, Logistics Network Design, Logistics Master Plan, Inventory Policies, Operations Strategy and Market Intelligence
