Question NW1123 to the Minister of Health

Reply:

The National Department of Health collaborated with the National Treasury and Department of Trade and Industry to identify local manufacturers and distributors to enable departments to procure locally manufactured Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) products. To this effect, the following initiatives have been concluded:

• Visibility of local manufacturers and distributors: A market intelligence tool was developed listing all local manufacturers and their distributors of the key seventeen (17) PPE items used in the prevention of the spread of COVID-19. The tool enables public sector buyers to inter alia identify manufacturers and their distributors as follows:

• • According to their provinces, cities, towns and districts;
  • It also provides information such as GPS coordinates of manufacturers and distributors;
  • Contact details of manufactures and distributors for ease of use
  • Information of where the PPE comes from such as country of origin and quality assurance;
  • It allows public sector buyers to identify exactly where the stock they are procuring coming from.
  • Local manufacturers’ information regarding BBBEE Level;
  • % Black Ownership;
  • Manufacturer information
  • Product Name
  • Product Price;
  • Shipper Pack Quantities; and
  • Product Category (Distinguishing between 17 Essential PPE Categories and Non-Essential PPE Product Categories).

(2) The National Department of Health and all provincial departments have allowed access to this tool for use in the sourcing of PPE items/products. The tool is available online and data / information is continuously updated with the information of new entry of service providers to PPE market.

• On Central Supplier Database (CSD) there are approximately 20 000 suppliers registered who have indicated that they are able to for deliver PPE items. On the basis of that information the National Department of Health collaborated with National Treasury to ask Treasury to do modification on CSD that will allow all service providers who are registered on CSD for the supply of PPE to be able to provide additional information such as stock-on-hand information;

• As at 7 June 2020, approximately 2600 suppliers have uploaded stock-on-hand information. This initiative will enable public sector buyers to be able to source PPE products with service providers who actually have stock;

• They can select service providers according to their province, districts and towns etc;

• They can further select service providers according to their BEE status, % black ownership, military veterans, black youth, black women, owned by black persons with disabilities, rural or township based business and SME status.

END.