COVID-19
COVID-19 SCM is a data monitoring tools for emergency supply chain management for COVID -19 commodities received from different sources and consumed by health facilities of Bangladesh
out in all 486 Upazila
Upazila Inventory Management System (UIMS) is desktop based software to maintain day to day logistics function of the
Upazila Family Planning Stores. Before SIAPS started, UIMS was implemented in 173 DGFP upazila stores. MOHFW/DGFP
requests SIAPS to take necessary initiatives to roll-out the system in rest 313 Upazilas by December 2012.
SIAPS initially carried out an option analysis to identify a sustainable mechanism for roll-out the system in new Upazilas. Then, the idea of TOT came up to develop
a pool of trainers and SIAPS team had set criterions to pick up 15 champions from 173 Upazilas & 21 regional warehouses on Inventory Management System. Then,
SIAPS facilitated to form 5 regional team (consist of 1 Technical Advisor from SIAPS and 3 DGFP staffs in each team) which was approved by DGFP accordingly. A
5-day TOT was organized by DGFP for these 5 regional team and each regional training team developed their action plan for conducting basic training on UIMS and
installation cycle as well. According to plan the training started on 13th October 2012 in five different venues and ended on 13th December 2012. Three participants
from each Upazila had been selected to participate in the training based on the criteria that participants must have some basic knowledge on computer operation
Total 968 participants attended in the two days training course, among them 782 were male and 186 were female attendees. Apart from this 75 high officials from
DGFP and ministry attended in different batches as resource person.
The objective of UIMS training -
- The primary objective of the training is to train the Upazila Store Personnel on Upazila Inventory Management System (UIMS-v2).
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The secondary objective is to roll-out the UIMS-v2 software all the Upazila in Bangladesh in order to efficiently maintain Upazila Family Planning Store
inventory using automated software, i.e. Upazila Inventory Management System (UIMS-v2). -
Finally the goal of this automated logistics management system is to bring all Upazila Family Planning Stores into an integrated Inventory Management
System ultimately all monthly reporting and data consolidation will be done automatically and instantly through online connectivity among all Upazila Stores,
Warehouses and DGFP HQ
Brief background: In 2007 DGFP initiated to develop desktop based inventory software for the Upazila Family Planning Store with assistance from USAID through JSI
/DELIVER Project. The software Upazila Inventory Management System (UIMS) was introduced in 40 Upazilas in 2008 as pilot. Another 84 Upazila were brought
under the UIMS software in between 2008 and 2009. From then UIMS software has been using in 124 Upazila out of 486 to maintain day-to-day logistics
management activities at Upazila (Sub-district) level. End of 2009, SPS programs took over UIMS from JSI/DELIVER Project for maintaining and country-wide
rolling-out the system.
Based on the lessons learned and users demand, SPS program upgraded the software with some new features and named it as UIMS-v2.
Later on SPS provided training to 49 Upazila (new sites) staff and installed the upgraded software in all (124+49)=173 Upazilas as well. It may be mentioned that
regular trouble shooting and on-the-job training of the software is conducted by SIAPS (the successor program of SPS) Technical Advisors – Logistics, for last couple
of years. SIAPS also providing its technical support to DGFP in backing up the database, managing user access, fixing software defects; is also making enhancement
and modifications. Based on the successful implementation of the system, MOHFW/DGFP requests SIAPS to take necessary initiatives to roll-out the system in rest
313 Upazilas by December 2012.
Outcome of the UIMS training: The training has both immediate and long term outcome -
Immediate outcome:
- Now all 486 Upazila officials capacity i.e. knowledge and skill has developed to run the software smoothly
- Operational status of UIMS among the Upazilas increased (can be monitored through SCIP)
- Auto generated supply plan
- Auto generated issue voucher
- Auto generated monthly 7B report
Long term outcome:
- Availability of contraceptives at the SDP level will be ensured
- All Upazila Family Planning store are under UIMS operation
- Manual workload reduced of the storekeepers
- Storekeepers will be able to concentrate other activities of good warehousing
- Correctness of monthly logistics report enhanced
- DGFP max-min supply policy ensured
- Reduced SDP level stock-out of contraceptives
- Reporting time would be faster and percent of timely reporting enhanced
- Different type of logistics report available at any point of time
- Huge printing cost (Issue voucher, 7B forms, Supply Plan Register) will come down