Ramaphosa hails Africa’s ‘Ebay of coronavirus resources’

The Covid-19 pandemic has ushered in a new era of intra-African cooperation, President Cyril Ramaphosa, in his position as African Union (AU) chair, told an online media briefing to launch the Africa Medical Supplies Platform on Thursday.

“The Africa Medical Supplies Platform, developed in partnership with Afreximbank, is a ground-breaking innovation. It is a continental online portal to enable every single African country to access critical medical supplies needed in the fight against the pandemic,” Ramaphosa said.

“Through this platform we will address shortages and security of supply, ensure price competitiveness and transparency in procurement, reduce logistical delays, simplify payment processes and provide a common platform where governments can access services from quality and certified suppliers.

“Think of it as the Amazon, the Alibaba or even the Ebay of coronavirus resources on the African continent. Made in Africa by Africans,” he said.

“The fundamental difference being that on this platform the buyer is not an individual, but governments. And countries will be able to directly source from manufacturers in both the necessary quantities and at competitive prices.

“Countries will have ready access to an online marketplace with the click of a button, as opposed to the onerous and time-consuming process of scouring the globe to procure these medical supplies.

“Connecting manufacturers and suppliers with governments directly removes the ‘middle man’ in supply chain processes that far too often becomes the doorway into which corrupt practices like price inflation and ‘agent management fees’ enter.

“By pooling the needs of the continent, we manage to achieve quantities of scale and present suppliers with a large and assured market.

“Finally, and arguably most importantly, with this platform we are laying another building block towards the African Continental Free Trade Area, whose launch has been delayed by the pandemic,” Ramaphosa said.

This platform is extending a lifeline to African small businesses and large industries that have been hard hit by the pandemic, he added.

“Many will now be able to repurpose their operations, as industries in a number of East African countries have done by converting their businesses to produce personal protective equipment.

“There are the scientists in Senegal that developed a Covid-19 rapid test kit that would cost $1 per patient, or the scientists, doctors, engineers and students from an African network of institutions that developed a prototype for a ventilator that can be made using 3D printers

“I urge you to go and find out about Solar Wash, a touch-free water dispenser developed by entrepreneurs in Ghana, that is solar powered.

“Or about the DiagnoseMe android application developed in Burkina Faso that enables users to quickly detect coronavirus symptoms,” Ramaphosa said.

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