Suppliers that support humanitarian efforts

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Gaining advantage at AidEx

Along with prioritising local African suppliers, using domestic stockpiling facilities can also massively reduce transport costs, as the process of airlifting wastes a huge amount of money on cargo planes and causes unnecessary carbon emissions. In an age where we are right to worry about financial and fuel resources, these are all important considerations.

Consequently, this year AidEx will launch its ‘Developing World Supplier Zone’. We have invited and funded 25 unique sub-Saharan African and South East Asian suppliers to come to Brussels, Belgium, to demonstrate how their equipment and services can be used to deliver a localised approach to aid.

Exhibitors include Reltex Tarpaulins Africa, Sunfire Solutions and the Ghana Bamboo Bikes Initiative, winner of the 2012 World Business and Development Award. On the conference side, we are running workshops on ‘Sourcing and Stockpiling in Advance of a Crisis’ and ‘New Models for Aid Delivery’ featuring representatives from Oxfam, UNHCR and Advance Aid.

Overall, a forward-thinking approach using local suppliers and pre-positioning will be critical as we enter a phase where mega trends such as climate change, population growth and urbanisation add further layers of complexity to already difficult humanitarian situations.

African suppliers can gain a competitive advantage by actively marketing themselves as best placed to help achieve an organisation’s end goals, due to their geographical location and engagement with their community. 

Nicholas Rutherford, director of AidEx, which takes place 24-25 October 2012 in Brussels, Belgium

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