For the first time the STEP 2.0 programme has been delivered to a cohort consisting entirely of women.
The participants – 29 directors and senior managers from the National Products Supply Chain Management Program, the Nigeria Department of Food and Drug Services (DFDS) and the Federal Ministry of Health – graduated from the programme last week.
Henrietta Bakura, STEP 2.0 participant and director of the Narcotics and Drug Abuse Division of DFDS in Nigeria, said, “STEP 2.0 helped me to unlock my potential, approach problems creatively and become a more confident leader.
“I believe the programme can significantly strengthen Nigeria’s health supply chains by fostering leadership, improving system efficiency and promoting local ownership and regional collaboration.”
The STEP 2.0 leadership development programme has equipped the participants with critical skills in leadership and change management to optimise public health supply chain systems. By focusing on an all-female cohort, the programme aimed to empower women leaders and foster greater female representation in leadership roles.
The STEP 2.0 programme is coordinated by People that Deliver. The programme in Nigeria was implemented by Empower School of Health and funded by the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Wholesalers Foundation.
Working with coaches to address supply chain problems
During the graduation ceremony, Atu Uzoma, STEP 2.0 participant and deputy director of the National Procurement and Supply Chain Management program said, “STEP 2.0 has offered us a platform to reflect, refresh and drive impact in our supply chain. The exposure to private sector perspectives has given us real insight and asked us how we can do better.”
During the first phase of the programme, the participants developed the leadership and change management skills required to lead their teams through periods of change and enable their organisations to thrive.
Then, throughout the week-long in-person workshop, the participants worked with their private-sector coaches - in this case female supply chain experts from private sector companies including Health Africa, Merck and Pfizer. With the support of their coaches, the participants defined and developed plans to overcome Your transformation challenge. During this phase, the participants identified a supply chain obstacle in their organisation, and developed and implemented a plan to lead their team through the challenge.
The last leg of the programme was a 12-week implementation phase, during which the participants implemented their transformation challenge plans and worked towards their measurable objectives.
From analogue to digital
The transformation challenge topics of the Nigerian participants centred largely on technology, selection and quantification, and storage and distribution of health products.
Chidinma Chizaram Olikaeze Nwabugwu’s challenge was to digitalise the Food and Drug Ministry’s basement store inventory documentation. Within six months of beginning the STEP 2.0 programme she has made a significant impact on her organisation achieving 70 percent accuracy in digital records, improving efficiency having streamlined inventory management practices, and enhancing data accessibility and reporting.
Yvonne Musa’s transformation challenge was to implement effective inventory management practices at the Federal Staff Hospital Pharmacy to reduce stock outs and minimise overstocking. After six months she has increased the availability of medicines and improved patient care by implementing more efficient inventory management practices, and reducing stockout and backorders.
STEP 2.0 coordinator and coach, Esther Ndichu, was impressed by the motivation and application of the participants: “So many of the participants quickly grasped the core concepts of the programme and have nurtured their own personal leadership styles. We can see already that many of the transformation challenge objectives have been met and are leading to increased medicines access.
“These leaders have all the attributes needed to imprint their resilience in their teams and organisations – in the end this will be hugely beneficial to the country’s heath supply chain.”
