Abu Dhabi Ports becomes logistics hub for distribution, storage of COVID-19 vaccines

A global logistics center in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently was put into use to accommodate mass storage and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.

The logistics center has a temperature-controlled warehouse with an area of 19,000 square meters and currently it is the largest vaccine distribution center in the Middle East.

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Led by the local Department of Health, the newly-launched Hope Consortium, which is a UAE-based public-private partnership, appointed these global transport companies based on their expert abilities and reach to safely and effectively deliver vaccine doses under different temperature of cold and ultra-cold conditions between transportation hubs, warehouses, medical facilities and other final destinations in over 170 countries.

“So the facility you’re in is a dedicated health care hub. It functions as the hub for vaccines, and other medical products. The capacity of this is over 120 million vaccines, with a temperature of 2 to 8 and between 15 and 20 million vaccine doses of minus 80 or ultra-cold,” said Robert Sutton, the head of Logistics Cluster, Abu Dhabi Ports.

“So this is a purpose-built facility and it acts as the hub for the MENA (Middle Eastern and Northern Africa), Africa, South Asia, and it allows us to bring vaccines from all over the world into a single location and then move those vaccines through the supply chain on the strict controls to make sure that we can support the need and the destination country,” he added.

UAE is the first country to apply for the official registration of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinopharm.

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