永續發展｜百靈佳殷格翰用無人機技術助力農村疫苗配送，幫助肯亞與迦納的醫療系統改革    Tackling health disparities through drone delivery

地平線上出現了一個黑點，伴隨著引擎旋轉的聲音迅速接近。興奮的孩子們在街道上奔跑，追逐這個飛行物體，背景中狗吠聲不斷。這個場景，代表著希望抵達了肯亞奔戈馬（Bungoma County），無人機的降臨創造了新的可能性—

帶來兩千劑狂犬病疫苗給當地社區的犬隻施打。¹狂犬病是主要由犬隻引起的致命疾病。若能確保運輸過程安全並且保持低溫，偏遠地區農村就能取得狂犬病疫苗，避免不必要的死亡。

Joyce Wamalwa 是肯亞 Kibisi 醫院的醫護人員，面對這種疾病帶來給她服務的人們巨大痛苦的殘酷現實。她說：「我們正在盡力對抗狂犬病，但很難。我們缺乏疫苗，必須將患者送往其他醫院接受治療，這迫使他們在崎嶇的道路上顛簸數小時。」 Wamalwa 定期與當地組織 Core Health and Wealth International（CHW）保持聯繫，今年年初獲邀分享她的見解和經驗。這是肯亞對抗狂犬病試點計畫的成功開始，該計畫透過跨國公司百靈佳殷格翰、參與 MMH 倡議計畫的新創企業，以及在地組織、政府部門、當地居民之間共同合作，逐步展開。

為偏遠地區提供藥品

在許多南非撒哈拉以南的國家，疫苗和對溫度敏感的醫療產品主要使用摩托車運輸，但這些運輸方式在儲存、冷卻和安全保障方面皆有限制。不穩定的冷鏈物流令疫苗接種驗證變得困難，也導致狂犬病疫苗無法即時交付。為了實施有效的疫苗接種計畫，我們必須仰賴百靈佳殷格翰「 Sustainable Development – For Generations 永續發展 – 世代經營」網絡中許多專業夥伴的專業知識。百靈佳殷格翰永續發展部門 IMETA 區² 主管 Ayman Eissa 表示：「我們一直努力在地方社區凝聚信任，建立有效的合作夥伴關係，共同的目標是改善基本的醫療健康服務的觸及度。」藉由與 MMH 網路中的在地 NGO 合作，例如 CHW 和GAASPP（GAASPP ，Golden Age and Albinism Support and Protection Program，肯亞西部的地方性社區組織），團隊能夠依靠牢固的信任基礎與當地社區進行互動。下一步是尋找航空運輸的合作夥伴，探索能對醫療保健帶來長遠影響的機會。

合作推動無人機配送計畫

經過共同討論後，Daniel Blay 與他的 Zipline 無人機配送團隊成為肯亞疫苗配送試點計畫的一部分。 Zipline 的遠程高速無人機重量不到 25 公斤，最大載重 3 公斤，它們從 30 公尺高的地方投下包裹，在 100 至 200 公尺的高度飛行，直到距離目的地約 2 分鐘處才會被發現。 Zipline 副總裁 Blay 說：「Zipline 雖然身為技術提供者，我們的成功有賴於在地強大的合作夥伴。他們不只進行社區動員，也提供優質的產品。」

為了覆蓋通往遠距疫苗接種站的關鍵最後一哩路，運用了便攜式太陽能冰箱 VacciBox 。 Drop Access 創辦人 Norah Magero 很驕傲的回憶：「我們沒有浪費任何一支疫苗！」他強調，困難從來不是因為缺乏疫苗，是因為儲存設備的不足導致疫苗變質。這家新創公司於今年（2023年）初加入了 MMH 加速器計畫，支援狂犬病相關活動。他們證明了 Vaccibox 的潛力，能存放多達 3,000 劑疫苗，並能依靠電池運作 36 小時。

具備現場洞察力、了解計畫優勢的關鍵人物，以及由專業人士建立適合存放產品的分發器（如 CHW ）等因素，對專案的成功至關重要。令人印象深刻的是，僅在一天之內，位於奔戈馬（Bungoma）和卡卡梅加（Kakamega）的 8 個不同地點就有 2,000 隻狗接種了狂犬病疫苗。該計畫的目標是在年底前，在肯亞湖經濟區再分發 10,000 劑疫苗。

顛覆生態系統的運銷配送策略

肯亞的試點計畫成功，建立在迦納成功的概念基礎上，目標是利用無人機運輸建立穩健的健康醫療系統。 CowTribe 是促成此次合作的組織之一。這家位於加納的初創企業提供了一個平台，讓畜牧業者可以透過集中需求獲得疫苗與獸醫服務；他們從 2019 年就成為 MMH 網絡的一部分。 CowTribe 與 Zipline 以及百靈佳殷格翰的跨域服務團隊合作，創立全面的運輸方法，因應農民和獸醫的基礎設施缺口，建立了一個開創性的配送系統。

在 2023 上半年，共計 292 次無人機飛行，飛往近 5,000 個農村，提供小型農戶約 140 萬劑家禽疫苗，疫苗成本大幅降低。 CowTribe 執行長 Peter Awin 說：「現在，幾乎所有的配送服務都由無人機進行，將客戶的等待時間從數天縮短到最多 8 小時。」

搭配可靠的地方協作與支援，無人機配送物資對醫療保健領域的影響非常顯著，不僅令基本醫療保健產品配送更加高效且符合成本效益，也能實現即時交付，不用額外找空間存放產品。百靈佳殷格翰 IMETA 區 IT 部門主管 Kiran Dsouza 強調：「我們在地方團體和政府單位等相關利益者的支持下，透過共同創建的生態系統成功翻轉了現有模式，證明了我們的決心與能力。」

這就是百靈佳殷格翰重視合作的原因，也再次證明其重要性，同時呈現公司如何透過團隊合作賦予社區改善生活條件的能力，並對改善世界最偏遠地區的重大服務產生重大影響。

¹狂犬病 (who.int)

²印度、中東、土耳其和非洲的縮寫

Tackling health disparities through drone delivery

They say good things don't drop from the sky, but they recently did in Western Kenya: Two thousand rabies vaccines were delivered by drones to help combat the disease in these rural communities. To ensure an effective cold chain storage, extensive collaboration was needed from pioneers on the ground, including NGOs, private companies, and public authorities. The use of drones introduces long-awaited, new possibilities for secure, on-demand delivery of life-saving products – for the individuals, animals and communities who need them most.

A black dot appears on the horizon, rapidly approaching with a whirling sound. Excited children race through the streets, chasing the flying object, as dogs bark in the background. This marks the arrival of an eagerly anticipated delivery in Bungoma County, Kenya, where the use of drones is creating new possibilities – bringing with them two thousand doses of rabies vaccines for the local communities' dogs.¹ Rabies is a fatal disease, primarily caused by dogs. These deaths could be avoided if available vaccines could be securely transported and cooled, readily accessible even in remote regions.

Joyce Wamalwa is a healthcare worker at the Kibisi Dispensary hospital in Kenya, facing the harsh reality of the immense suffering the disease brings to the people she serves. “We're doing our best to combat rabies, but it's tough,” she says. “We lack vaccines and must send patients to other hospitals for life-saving treatment, forcing them to travel for hours on rough roads.” Wamalwa is regularly in touch with the local organization Core Health and Wealth International (CHW) and was asked earlier this year to share her insights and experiences. It marked the beginning of what became a successful pilot project to fight rabies in Kenya and unfolded through a remarkable collaborative effort between Boehringer Ingelheim as a multinational corporation, start-ups and local organizations from the Boehringer's Making More Health (MMH) initiative, government authorities, and the people on the ground.

Providing medication to remote areas

In many Sub-Saharan African countries, vaccines and temperature-sensitive medical products are mainly transported by motorbikes, with limited storage, cooling, and security. Unstable cold chains make verifying vaccinations difficult and hinder timely rabies vaccine delivery. To implement an effective vaccination delivery program, it was essential to leverage the expertise of many of the Boehringer's partners in the company's existing Sustainable Development – For Generations network. “We have worked hard to build trust and create effective partnerships on the ground, with the shared objective of creating better access to essential health services,” shares Ayman Eissa, Lead Sustainable Development at Boehringer Ingelheim IMETA². Collaborating with local NGOs from our MMH network like CHW and GAASPP (Golden Age and Albinism Support and Protection Program), a regional community organization in western Kenya, the team was able to rely on a strong foundation of trust to engage the local communities. The next step was to find an aerial transportation partner to explore opportunities with a lasting impact on healthcare outcomes.

Partnering for drone distributions

Upon joint consultation, Daniel Blay and his team from Zipline, specializing in on-demand drone delivery, became part of the Kenyan pilot project to distribute vaccines. Their long-range, high-speed drones weigh under 25 kg and carry up to 3 kg. Dropping packages from a height of 30 meters, they fly at altitudes between 100 and 200 meters, remaining virtually unnoticed until they are just two minutes away. “Zipline serves as the technology provider, but our success depends on strong partners on the ground who mobilize communities and supply high-quality products,” says Zipline's Vice President Blay.

To cover the crucial last-mile to remote vaccination stations, VacciBox, a portable solar-powered fridge, was used during the campaign. “Not a single vaccine was wasted that day,” Norah Magero proudly recalls, founder of Drop Access, emphasizing that the challenge is not a lack of vaccines, but rather spoiled vaccines due to inadequate storage. The start-up joined the MMH Accelerator Program earlier this year and was asked to support the rabies project. This experience demonstrated VacciBox's potential, now capable of storing up to 3,000 vaccines and running for 36 hours on battery.

On-site insights, people who recognize the program's benefits, and professionals constructing dispensers for the delivered products (as done by CHW) are crucial for the project's success. An impressive tally of ca. 2,000 dogs were vaccinated at eight different sites throughout Bungoma and Kakamega County in only one day. By the end of the year, the program aims to distribute an additional 10,000 doses across Kenya's Lake Region Economic Bloc.

Disruption to by an entire ecosystem

The Kenya pilot project builds on a successful proof-of-concept in Ghana, aiming to create robust health systems using drone delivery. CowTribe is one of the organizations that made this innovative collaboration possible in the first place. The Ghana-based start-up offers a platform for livestock farmers to access vaccinations and veterinary services by aggregating demand and has been part of the MMH network since 2019. In collaboration with Zipline and a cross-functional team from Boehringer Ingelheim, the pioneers had established a holistic approach to identify infrastructural pain points for farmers and agro-vets, building a groucndbreaking distribution system:

In the first half of 2023, 292 drone flights distributed 1.4 million poultry vaccine doses to nearly 5,000 rural smallholders and which resulted in a significant reduction in vaccine costs. “Nearly all our deliveries are now drone-supported, cutting customer wait times from several days to a maximum of eight hours,” confirms CowTribe CEO Peter Adwin.

The impact of drone delivery in healthcare, facilitated by reliable collaboration on the ground, is truly remarkable: Not only has this innovative approach the potential to make the delivery of essential healthcare products more efficient and cost-effective, but it also enables on-demand deliveries without the need for storage at a facility. “Our collective disruption through a co-created ecosystem is recognized by stakeholders on the ground and within the government, validating our ambitions,” emphasizes Kiran Dsouza, Head of IT at Boehringer Ingelheim IMETA.

This acknowledgment underscores the significance of the Boehringer's collaborative efforts, serving as a prime example of how, by working together, the company can empower communities to improve their living conditions and make a meaningful contribution to enhance access to health in the most remote areas of this world.

¹Rabies (who.int)

²(short for: India, Middle East, Turkey and Africa)