The product groups
of the UNICEF Supply Catalogue contain information about pharmaceutical products, micronutrient products and nutrition products. This information is intended for health professionals and supply and logistics staff working in the health services area, involved in preventive and curative care and the supply management of pharmaceutical and nutrition products.
The pharmaceutical products listed are all considered essential medicines and are on the World Health Organization (WHO) Model List of Essential Medicines. Further information on medicines can be found in the WHO Model Formulary 2002 (see footnote), or by contacting the Pharmaceutical and Micronutritional Team, Supply Division.
Since its creation in 1946, UNICEF has been supplying pharmaceutical products at competitive rates worldwide. Since 1978, UNICEF and other UN agencies and bilateral aid agencies have been providing support to governments in the acquisition, storage, distribution and correct and rational use of essential medicines. Provision of essential medicines not only alleviates suffering and disease directly, but also underpins all other aspects of primary health care.
Appropriate and rational utilization of essential medicines is of prime importance as a failure at this final stage can negate the effort and expense involved in providing supplies in the first place. Considerable attention must therefore be given to training health workers at all levels in the proper prescription and use of drugs and to educating the public about the use and misuse of drugs.
UNICEF Supply Division assists national governments, donor agencies and other organizations involved in medicines supply to obtain quality pharmaceutical products at reasonable prices. This is done by selecting essential medicines produced by reliable suppliers that meet international standards for manufacturing pharmaceutical products.
With its long history and experience in this field, its partnerships with key agencies such as WHO, and its global reach, UNICEF can be considered a reliable partner in pharmaceutical procurement. UNICEF's procurement system, knowledge of global markets and bulk purchasing agreements mean that our customers can get access to high quality essential medicines at competitive prices. All UNICEF suppliers of pharmaceutical products must have Good Manufacturing Practice licences. UNICEF Supply Division has a Good Distribution Practice (GDP) licence from the Danish Medicines Agency.
Essential medicines provide safe, effective treatment for all the most common infectious and chronic diseases. Essential medicines programmes reduce morbidity and mortality by ensuring the accessibility, rational use and quality of medicines. The medicines offered in the UNICEF Supply Catalogue have been selected from the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines published in the Technical Report Series 882. Most of these are stocked in Copenhagen - ready for set packing and rapid delivery.
Products not listed in the UNICEF Supply Catalogue are considered non-standard items. For all non-standard items, an agreement with Supply Division must be reached, based on product availability from UNICEF-approved manufacturers, importance of the pharmaceutical product and assurance that the product requested is the most appropriate for the particular situation.
UNICEF and WHO recommend the use of generic International Non-proprietary Names (INN) for each pharmaceutical product - the shortened scientific name based on the active ingredient. Many essential medicines are no longer under patent and can be manufactured under their generic names. They can be bought at much lower prices, but offer the same efficacy, bio-availability, safety and quality.
UNICEF and WHO also recommend the use of single-ingredient preparations. Exceptions may be made where treatment of long duration including several medicines is needed and where adherence to treatment is crucial, as with the fixed dose combination anti-tuberculosis medicines listed in the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines. In the future there may be other important exceptions if drug resistance can be reduced or avoided and patient compliance improved through the use of fixed-dose combination products (for example in treatment of malaria or HIV/AIDS).
UNICEF Supply Division follows the Inter-agency Guidelines: "Operational Principles for Good Pharmaceutical Procurement" and ensures that different procurement functions and responsibilities, such as preparation of product specifications, selection of suppliers, technical adjudication and commercial adjudication of tenders are handled by individuals and centres with appropriate expertise for each specific function.
The UNICEF Supply Division warehouse in Copenhagen is the only United Nations warehouse licensed to wholesale pharmaceutical products in accordance with the European Community Guidelines on Good Distribution Practice of Medicinal Products for Human Use.
The organizational structure of UNICEF Supply Division ensures that there is a separation of responsibility between those who perform the assessment of the quality of the products and those who are responsible for procurement. Supply Division purchases only from pre-qualified manufacturers with a proven record of competence, knowledge and experience and who comply with the Good Manufacturing Practice standards established by the World Health Organization (WHO Technical Report Series No. 823, 1992).
The quality of pharmaceutical products is a major concern for UNICEF Supply Division. As a result several procedures have been put into place:
All products supplied by UNICEF are manufactured and conform to the latest edition of British, United States, European or International Pharmacopoeia, if such a monograph exists. For non-pharmacopoeia products, the finished product specifications from the suppliers are used. Raw materials used in manufacturing must be of good quality and from approved sources only and conform to the standards in the latest edition of British Pharmacopoeia, United States Pharmacopoeia , European Pharmacopoeia or International Pharmacopoeia , whenever applicable.
Pharmaceutical containers must conform to the latest pharmacopoeia, whenever applicable. Packaging should be suitable for delivery and use in countries with adverse climatic and storage conditions (Zone IV as specified in Annex 5 in WHO Technical Report Series No. 863, 1996) and be suitable for shipment, storage and use worldwide at elevated temperatures and humidity. The containers should normally be tamper-proof and the size proportional to the contents with the addition of appropriate padding to prevent damage to the product during shipment. Glass bottles should be separated by criss-cross partitions or packed individually in cartons and no glass containers larger than 250 ml can be used.
Most drugs stocked in Copenhagen can be set-packed on request. A set pack could comprise a two-month supply of essential medicines for a health centre or a village dispensary which can be distributed directly to the centres immediately upon arrival. A pre-established schedule of regular shipments from Copenhagen can also be arranged. Drugs that are temperature sensitive are not suitable for set- packing.
¹The WHO Model Formulary can be
found on: www.who.int/medicines/organization/par/formulary.shtml
Printed version available through WHO.