Abstract:
Pharmaceuticals procurement represents the largest health expenditure and consumes major
share of organization's resources because they are needed for health service provision. This
calls for Public Private Partnership (PPP) for enhancing efficient health service provision.
This study was intended to investigate procurement of pharmaceuticals under PPP by using
experiences of Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre (KCMC). The study objectives were
to; exploring procedures involved in pharmaceuticals procurement under PPP, assess the
Public Procurement Act (PPA) No. 7 of 2011 compliance under PPP and identify challenges
faced in pharmaceuticals procurement process. Case study research design was adopted with
the sample of 30 respondents who were purposively selected. Findings revealed that, at
KCMC, the procurement of pharmaceuticals under PPP follows the usual procurement
procedures as stipulated in PPA No 7 of 2011. The challenges of pharmaceuticals
procurement under PPP are inadequate source of supplier, inconvenience of the regulatory
framework regarding pharmaceuticals procurement, insufficient funds, poor quality of
pharmaceuticals, unavailability of essential medicines, prices fluctuation of
pharmaceuticals, delay in permit and registration for pharmaceutical procurement,
instability of procurement plan due to changes in technology and unclear specifications.
This study recommends for formation of specific laws, policies and regulations for
pharmaceuticals procurement under PPP, ensuring funds availability, and assurance of
essential medicines availability.
