INTRODUCTION
Hundreds of millions of people are affected by disasters each year and that number of worldwide natural and man-made disasters is increasing. Improving the nature of logistics and supply chain management for humanitarian aid are essential for responders to save human lives. In these situations, demand can fluctuate greatly and is often uncertain. Coordination of supply chains between organizations and management of supplies for humanitarian needs are increasingly needed and must be put in place effectively to save more lives. This paper will define and identify some unique characteristics of disaster relief supply chains as well as its basic process while highlighting some of the ideas used by the American Red Cross and other relief aid agencies.
DEFINTION
The Fritz Institute offers a definition used by a broad range of humanitarian organizations of humanitarian supply chains as:
The process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient, cost effective flow and storage of goods and materials as well as related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption for the purpose of alleviating the suffering of vulnerable people. The function encompasses a range of activities, including preparedness, planning, procurement, transport, warehousing, tracking and tracing, customs and clearance. (Thomas, 2005).
The term humanitarian logistics is often used interchangeably with humanitarian supply chain and it is implied in this definition. Life-saving defines humanitarian supply chains whereas as profit is the defining factor for commercial ones.
CAUSES OF HUMANITARIAN SUPPLY CHAINS
Wherever a disaster occurs and whenever humans are involved, a disaster management is put into place using a...
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...with the goal of either preventing the occurrence of an emergency or reducing the community's vulnerability when an emergency happens.
CONCLUSION
A disaster relief supply chain has the unique goal of using the supply chain for saving as many lives as possible. The unique characteristics that different from commercial ones include agility, short lead time, dependence on volunteers as well as employees for labor, logistics that deal with damaged infrastructure and reliance on the immediate coordination of organization partnerships in a short period of time. Demand is often uncertain and can fluctuate greatly. The American Red Cross and other aid agencies help thousands of people affected by disasters each year. As the number of disasters increases, improving the management of the humanitarian supply chain is essential for a faster response to saving lives.
In times of war, tragedy, and suffering, there has always been a call for humanitarian aid. As the number of humanitarian emergencies increase, David Rieff recognizes and details the ways in which humanitarianism has transformed in his book, A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis, and critically reflects on the impact of humanitarianism and humanitarian efforts. In this essay, I plan to summarize Rieff's argument regarding humanitarianism and its impact. Then, I will engage with Rieff’s main ideas by responding to the core elements of his argument. Finally, I will acknowledge the themes and ideas introduced in the book that deserve further exploration.
Maxwell et al. (2006) argued that the terms, supply chain and the cold chain management could be defined under the "umbrella" of the sustainable production and consumption.
The history of humanitarian aid has been muddied by cases of NGOs and UN groups enabling violent groups by providing too much support and aid. During the Rwandan Genocide, two ethnic groups, the Hutus and the Tutsis, clashed and thousands of Tutsis were killed at the hands of the Hutus. Many people fled the country seeking refuge, and agencies set up refugee camps in some of the neighboring countries, beginning one of the largest humanitarian aid disasters that the world has ever seen (Lassiter 54). Many ex-combatants found their ways into these cams, receiving food and aid supplies. Some of these camps were even used as military bases where the ex-combatants could rally and then leave to kill their enemies. Thinking that they could curb reliance on aid workers and agencies, the aid was put under the control of the Rwandan soldiers. Because of the prejudice of the soldiers, only people of certain races and ethnicities received aid. The availability of aid to the military and militants enabled them to accomplish military objectives without fear of retribution. While the aid problems in the aftermat...
WISNER, J.D., TAN, K. and LEONG, G.K., 2009. Principles of supply chain management : a balanced approach / Joel D. Wisner, Keah-Choon Tan, G. Keong Leong. Mason, OH : South-Western Cengage Learning, 2009; 2nd ed. pp 111-113,262
This paper will discuss the dynamics of the American Red Cross case and how it affected the ability to provide adequate emergency response to catastrophic events. Over 10 years, the American Red Cross has been implementing strategies to ensure that the organization is better equipped when dealing with disasters. Not only has the American Red Cross has been faced with so much negativity, the organization is fighting very hard to change the concepts of how the organization can rebound from such criticism.
First of all, it is crucial to understand what exactly ‘Humanitarian space’ is, before discussing how...
Ferdows, K., Lewis, M., & Machuca, J. A.D., 2003. Zara. Supply Chain Forum: International Journal, 4(2), 62-66.
Humanitarianism as a concept has existed in various forms for a great deal of time. However, the turn of the century and rise of humanity as a global identity has led to an increase in humanitarianism efforts, especially in conflict areas. Unfortunately, it has not necessarily led to an increase in the successes of humanitarian efforts in conflict areas. The purpose of this paper is to explore what contributes to humanitarianism failing outside of the contextual issues often identified within a conflict zone. Specifically, I will look at the role the philosophy underpinning humanitarianism plays in trapping humanitarians in a cycle of providing conditions for the development or exacerbation of the very conflict they aim to prevent.
There is no static or perfect definition that can encapsulate all that may fall under the theme of humanitarian intervention. Philosophically speaking, humanitarian intervention is the idea that individuals have the duty to prevent human rights violations from occurring. Furthermore, the legal basis of humanitarian intervention is derived from the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Prevention of Genocide and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Lecture 11/15/16). As decided by the UN in 1948, all nations have a responsibility to protect, or to prevent crimes against humanity, and while it was an important milestone for the recognition of human rights, not all those experiencing the crimes of genocide
“Logistic is the process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient, effective flow of goods storage of goods, services and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption for the purpose of conforming to customer requirements”
Supply chain management has been defined as that process that involves the management of information, materials, and all the finances that are handled within and across the entire supply chain process (Christopher, 2016). The management is usually done through out the entire supply chain management from that moment when the suppliers are involved through all the manufacturing activities, different distribution activities, and the way that the products are served to the final product consumer (Turban, et al., 2002). The process also includes all the activities that different organizations offers to their customers as after sale services for purposes perfecting their services and products towards their highly valued customers (Christopher,
Disaster Recovery Planning is the critical factor that can prevent headaches or nightmares experienced by an organization in times of disaster. Having a disaster recovery plan marks the difference between organizations that can successfully manage crises with minimal cost, effort and with maximum speed, and those organizations that cannot. By having back-up plans, not only for equipment and network recovery, but also detailed disaster recovery plans that precisely outline what steps each person involved in recovery efforts should undertake, an organization can improve their recovery time and minimize the disrupted time for their normal business functions. Thus it is essential that disaster recovery plans are carefully laid out and carefully updated regularly. Part of the plan should include a system where regular training occurs for network engineers and managers. In the disaster recovery process extra attention should also be paid to training any new employees who will have a critical role in this function. Also, the plan should require having the appropriate people actually practice what they would do to help recover business function should a disaster occur. Some organizations find it helpful to do this on a quarterly or semi-annual basis so that the plan stays current with the organization’s needs.
Coyle, J., Langley, C., Gibson, B., Novack, R. and Bardi, E. (2008).Supply Chain Management: A Logistics Perspective. 8th ed. Cengage Learning, p.366.
Inventory management involves planning, coordinating, and controlling the acquisition, storage, handling, movement, distribution, and possible sale of raw materials, component parts and subassemblies, supplies and tools, replacement parts, and other assets that are needed to meet customer wants and needs (Collier & Evans, 2009). In order for business and supply chains to run smoothly, they must meet all the listed requirements for effective inventory management. Thus, inventory management must be managed wisely in order to be a successful an...
Supply Chain Management: An International Journal. (1996). Retrieved April 29, 2014, from emeraldinsight.com website: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1464659