The MSD Iringa Zone was officially established on April 7, 2004. It is one of MSD's ten operational zones, covering the southern regions of Tanzania. The establishment of the MSD Iringa Zone was part of the Tanzanian government's strategic initiatives to decentralize the distribution of medical supplies, ensuring access to essential health commodities in more remote and underserved areas.

Regions Served by Iringa Zone

MSD Iringa Zone serves three regions:

• Iringa Region
• Njombe Region
• Ruvuma Region

These regions encompass a significant part of southern Tanzania and are characterized by rural and often remote healthcare facilities. However, an exception exists for the Makete and Tunduru District Councils, which are served by the Mbeya Zone and Mtwara Zone, respectively, due to geographical and logistical reasons.

Strategic Objectives

MSD Iringa Zone's primary goal is to facilitate the uninterrupted flow of essential health commodities from suppliers to health facilities. To achieve this, the zone implements a well-coordinated supply chain management system. This system ensures that key logistics principles, such as the flow of funds, commodities, and reverse logistics, are integrated into its operational mandate.

In line with MSD’s broader mission, the Iringa Zone strives to ensure timely deliveries, improve the efficiency of its operations, and maintain an accurate tracking system to monitor inventory levels and stock movements in real time.

1. Storage and Warehouse Management

One critical role of MSD Iringa Zone is managing its warehouses. These storage facilities are strategically located to serve the regions efficiently. Proper storage conditions are essential for maintaining the quality of life-saving health commodities such as medicines, medical supplies, and laboratory reagents.

The product expiration dates are closely monitored to ensure that the stored health products remain effective and safe. The zone employs modern, computerized storage systems to maintain an accurate record of stock levels and improve the efficiency of picking, receiving, and dispatching items.

The introduction of technological systems, such as Epicor 10, has further streamlined warehouse management, improving the speed and accuracy of warehouse transactions.

2. Distribution Coverage

MSD Iringa Zone is responsible for distributing health commodities across its designated regions. The distribution process is challenging due to the geographic and climatic conditions of the southern highlands. The area covers a vast region with difficult-to-reach areas, including steep mountains, rivers, and slippery roads, particularly during the rainy season.

Despite these challenges, MSD Iringa Zone remains committed to providing health facilities with essential supplies. The zone implements a direct delivery system to ensure that products are delivered to the doorsteps of all health facilities under its jurisdiction. It follows a six-cycle delivery model, with products being offered to various types of health institutions, including:

• 3 Regional Referral Hospitals
• 17 District Hospitals
• 48 Military & Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs)
• 76 Health Centers
• 739 Dispensaries

MSD Iringa Zone serves 883 health facilities. The number of facilities the zone serves changes as new ones are established, particularly in remote areas where healthcare infrastructure is continuously expanding.

3. Customer Engagement

MSD Iringa Zone serves a broad customer base, which includes hospitals, dispensaries, health centers, military and faith-based organizations. These customers are segmented into two main categories:

• Corporate Customers:These include Regional Referrals and facilities supported by health programs.
• Non-Corporate Customers:This group includes Primary Health Facilities, District Hospitals, and facilities registered under the President’s Office—Regional Administration and Local Government (PO-RALG). It also contains facilities directly managed by the Ministry of Health.

The MSD staff in the Iringa Zone are trained to provide high customer service standards, ensuring that the needs of corporate and non-corporate customers are met efficiently.

4. Handling Customer Feedback

Customer feedback and complaints are essential to MSD Iringa’s operations. The zone provides multiple platforms for customers to submit feedback, including letters, social media groups, email, telephone, and physical visits. The inputs are treated with the utmost confidentiality and used to improve service delivery.

MSD Iringa Zone has also adopted modern communication tools like WhatsApp to bring customers together and enhance communication.

5. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

MSD Iringa Zone is committed to being a responsible corporate citizen. It has undertaken various initiatives to benefit the communities in which it operates. These initiatives often focus on disadvantaged groups and align with MSD’s operational goals of improving healthcare services across Tanzania.

MSD Iringa has collaborated with local communities to maintain social services, using its resources and surplus to contribute to the well-being of the people it serves.

6. Challenges

Operating in the southern highlands presents significant logistical challenges. The regions covered by the MSD Iringa Zone are characterized by rugged terrain, which complicates the distribution of medical supplies to some areas. Weather conditions, such as rain and fog, also affect the accessibility of certain health facilities, particularly in rural areas.