Public Private Partnerships: Humanitarian organizations and companies recognize the importance of supply chain partnerships
New survey engaged international organizations, corporate representatives and donors. Results of the survey were presented for the first time during the conference ConnectChains of the Logistics Hall of Fame in Berlin.
Ismaning near Munich/Berlin, December 17, 2024. A recent survey on the state of public private partnerships for managing humanitarian logistics, supported by the Logistics Hall of Fame, Prof. Dr. Sander de Leeuw (Wageningen University & Research), Mitsuko Mizushima (Fritz Institute) and Prof. Dr. Stephan Wagner (ETH Zürich), shows that both humanitarian organisations and the private sector increasingly recognize the importance and benefits of supply chain partnerships in managing humanitarian logistics.
The survey was conducted in November 2024 and engaged humanitarian organizations, corporate representatives, and international donors. Prof. Dr. Sander de Leeuw presented the results of the survey during ConnectChains - The Humanitarian Supply Chain Conference of the Logistics Hall of Fame in Berlin on December 5. The results indicate that both private sector companies and humanitarian organizations are largely satisfied with the partnerships they have engaged in.
For the private sector, the main reasons to engage in supply chain partnerships with the humanitarian sector are getting to know the humanitarian sector better, being involved in ‘doing right’ which in turn boosts employee morale. For humanitarian organisations, partnering with the private sector in supply chain is aimed at getting access to services, people and/or products, getting access to knowledge and saving costs.
Public private partnerships, however, come along with several challenges. For the private sector, the shortage of skilled resources, lack of data and limited access to state-of-the-art technology in the humanitarian sector are most critical. For the humanitarian sector, partnering with the private sector on supply chain topics is challenging because of difficulties in aligning objectives with the private sector, because of the lack of knowledge in the private sector about the specifics of the humanitarian sector, and the perceived interest of the private sector in media attention.
The results also indicate that partnerships have moved away from an event-driven focus to long-term integrative partnerships, encompassing cash, products, and services for greater impact. Organizations have witnessed a larger share of non-financial support in their supply chain, visible in arrangements for pro bono support via providing warehouse space, transport capacity, and personnel. However, challenges remain and must be addressed to unlock the full potential of these collaborations. These challenges include the need to align objectives between the private and humanitarian sector in managing humanitarian logistics, and in particular the need to provide support for the backroom function of humanitarian aid rather than the private sector supporting the frontline of aid, as well as regularly communicate about progress.
Background ConnectChains: The ConnectChains - The Humanitarian Supply Chain Conference is an event of the Logistics Hall of Fame. It celebrated its premiere in Berlin at the end of 2023. The aim of the event is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge in the field of humanitarian supply chain management between humanitarian organizations, commercial enterprises and other stakeholders and to network more closely than before. In addition, humanitarian organizations and logistics companies should be better prepared to deal with crisis situations. The 2024 premium partners were duisport and the Fritz Institute from the USA, while the partners were Blut transportiert, European Logistics Association (ELA), Logistik Heute and trans aktuell.
Background Logistics Hall of Fame: The Logistics Hall of Fame honors international personalities who have made an outstanding contribution to the further development of logistics and supply chain management. The goal of the Logistics Hall of Fame is to serve as a global platform for documenting the milestones of logistics and honoring its movers and shakers, thus underscoring the importance of logistics for business and society. The Logistics Hall of Fame also presents the Logistics Leader of the Year Award to current pacesetters in logistics. The sponsor is STILL GmbH. In addition, the Logistics Hall of Fame recognizes innovative logistics projects by humanitarian organizations with the Lynn C. Fritz Medal for Excellence in Humanitarian Logistics. The sponsor is the Fritz Institute. The non-profit initiative is supported by politics, associations, media, business and science. Dr Volker Wissing, Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, is the patron.
Supporters: 24/7 ASSISTANCE, AEB, BLG LOGISTICS, Bundesministerium für Digitales und Verkehr (BMDV), Bundesverband für Eigenlogistik & Verlader (BWVL), Bundesverband Güterkraftverkehr Logistik und Entsorgung (BGL), Bundesverband Materialwirtschaft, Einkauf und Logistik (BME), Bundesverband Paket und Expresslogistik (BPEX), Bundesverband Spedition und Logistik (DSLV), Bundesvereinigung Logistik (BVL), Deutsches Verkehrsforum (DVF), Duisburger Hafen (duisport), EPAL, European Logistics Association (ELA), Exotec, Flanders Investment & Trade, Fritz Institute (Stifter), GARBE Industrial Real Estate, Gebrüder Weiss, Goldbeck, Häfen und Güterverkehr Köln (HGK), HIAB, impact media projects, International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA), International Road Transport Union (IRU), KRONE, Lebensmittel Zeitung, LIP Invest, LOGISTIK-Kurier, LTG - Landauer Transportgesellschaft Doll, materialfluss, METRO LOGISTICS, NIMMSTA, pfenning-Gruppe, PSI Logistics, RIO – The Logistics Flow, RXO, Schnellecke Logistics, SCHUNCK GROUP, Seifert Logistics Group, SETLOG, SSI Schäfer, STILL (Stifter), TGW Logistics Group, trans aktuell, Verband der Automobilindustrie (VDA), WILTSCHE Fördersysteme, Winner Spedition, WISAG
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