Our Supply Chain Leadership Across Africa series continues in earnest with a fascinating discussion around the proposition of using drone technology for social good. In this episode, hosts Scott Luton welcomes Prashant Yadav to the show, a globally recognized expert in healthcare supply chains and affiliate professor at global business school INSEAD, where he leads the Africa Initiative. Prashant is something of a media virtuoso, having appeared in prominent publications such as The Economist and Financial Times to share his expertise. Sitting alongside Prashant is Olivier Defawe of VillageReach, a global nonprofit that transforms healthcare delivery to reach everyone by working with partners to build responsive primary healthcare systems that deliver health products and services to the most under-reached. A key priority for both guests centers around realizing the immense potential for drones to unlock healthcare access, supply chain optimization, and socioeconomic development across the African continent. During the discussion, they touch on a number of pertinent questions: What are the major challenges to scaling and sustaining drone transport operations in Africa? How can we ultimately ensure drone transport is more cost-effective for public health supply chains? What can stakeholders do on the supply and demand side to increase adoption…

The Buzz is Supply Chain Now’s regular Monday livestream, held at 12 noon ET each week. This show focuses on some of the leading stories from global supply chain and global business, always with special guests – the most important of which is the live audience! In this week’s episode of The Buzz, hosts Scott Luton and Elba Pareja-Gallagher discuss the latest news and developments in the global supply chain industry. They touch on the ongoing crisis at the Port of Baltimore, the potential resurgence of the manufacturing industry, and the importance of sustainable sourcing and packaging. The episode features a special guest, Patricia Coan, COO of Pura, a smart home fragrance company. Coan shares her insights on building high-performing teams, the complexity of the fragrance industry, and Pura’s sustainability efforts, including a partnership with an Aboriginal tribe in Australia for sustainable sandalwood sourcing.