Vanuatu awards international drone companies with commercial contracts for vaccine delivery

Port Vila, 25 October 2018: In a global first, the Vanuatu Government has awarded two international drone companies, Swoop Aero and Wingcopter, with commercial contracts to trial the use of drones to bring lifesaving vaccines to children living in remote rural islands.

“Ensuring vital supplies at health facilities are consistently available is an ongoing challenge for Vanuatu due to geography, logistics and high costs. An important step for dealing with some of these challenges to providing healthcare to vulnerable communities is looking at innovative ways such as the use of drones,” said Director General of the Ministry of Health in Vanuatu, George Taleo.

The first phase of the drone trials will take place during the week of 3-7 December when these two drone companies will test the viability of delivering vaccines to inaccessible areas.

“UNICEF is proud to partner with the Vanuatu Government in such an innovative initiative to trial drones for delivering a reliable supply of vaccines to children living in remote communities,” said UNICEF Pacific Representative, Sheldon Yett.

“The challenges of reaching children in the remote islands of Vanuatu are immense, nurses often walk several hours to deliver vaccines to health clinics in these communities. Every child in the world has the right to lifesaving vaccines and this technology is a step towards reaching those children most at risk,” he added.

Vanuatu is an island country in the Pacific, an archipelago of 83 islands that covers 1,600 kilometres. About one-third of the inhabited islands have airfields and established roads, which creates considerable logistical challenges to reach, engage with and support remote communities.

Through the Government’s competitive procurement process, a total of twenty bids from drone companies within the Pacific region and from countries around the world were received and evaluated, with two contracts awarded to Swoop Aero Pty Ltd of Melbourne, Australia, to cover health facilities on Epi and the Shepherd Islands as well as Erromango Island with vaccine delivery. Wingcopter Holding GmbH & Co. KG of Darmstadt, Germany, was awarded the third contract to deliver vaccines to facilities on Pentecost Island.

During the first phase of the drone trials in December, drones will take off from the old Takara airstrip, North Efate. Flying over the offshore islands of Emao, Pele and Nguna drones will drop off a package at a cordoned off area at Siviri football field returning to land at Takara. The second phase of the trial, which will transport vaccines to health facilities on the three islands, is expected to commence in early January 2019.

The drone trials will engage health care workers from the facilities on the selected islands, as well as teachers, children and government officials, which is vital to share knowledge and expertise.

This initiative is led by Vanuatu’s Ministry of Health and Ministry of Infrastructure & Public Utilities through the Civil Aviation Authority of Vanuatu. Technical support and financing are provided by UNICEF and DFAT innovationXchange.

Photos of nurses’ journeys in Vanuatu islands to deliver vaccines: http://bit.ly/2ShxF8z

About UNICEF

UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do.  Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere. For more information about UNICEF and its work for children, visit https://www.unicef.org/pacificislands/.  Follow UNICEF Pacific on Twitter and Facebook

About the Vanuatu Ministry of Health

The Vanuatu Ministry of Health is guided by the Vanuatu Health Sector Strategy. The mission of the Ministry of Health is to protect and promote the health of all people in Vanuatu. The values it seeks to uphold are consumer focus, equity, quality, integrity and efficiency. Its vision is for an integrated and decentralised health system that promotes efficient and effective and equitable health services for the good health and general wellbeing of all people in Vanuatu.

About the Vanuatu Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Utilities

The Vanuatu Ministry of Infrastructure & Public Utilities has a vision for a safe and integrated transport infrastructure network. Its mission includes maintenance and upgrade of transport infrastructure network equitably in rural and urban areas through inclusive and effective partnerships; implement safety and security systems requirements in compliance with Vanuatu laws and international conventions; provide leadership and develop appropriate legislative framework and governance system that is conducive to infrastructure development; and utilize resources and assets efficiently while adhering to principles of accountability and transparency.  

For more information, please contact:

Rebecca Olul, UNICEF Vanuatu Field Office, +678 24655, +678 77 666 04, rolul@unicef.org

Cate Heinrich, UNICEF Pacific, +679 9925 606, cheinrich@unicef.org