NAME: MUHAMMAD SIDDIQUE

REG. NO: 12271

COURSE: SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

INSTRUCTOR: JIYAD SHIEKH

ASSIGNMENT NO: 04
Q1. List down key strategies recommended for procurement during COVID-19 and write your

point of view regarding it. (Do not exceed 4 lines for each)

ANSWER:

1) Policy:

The government can make clear laws and policies of purchasing. This will make the rules

clear and will help in purchasing, such as Italy used centralizing procurement that

simplified its procurement process.

2) Coordination:

It is important for government to set clear goals and priorities, and timely coordinate with

the suppliers. During such challenging time quick- decisions are required so that none of

the opportunity is missed. Governments can use e-procurement for sharing of data and

coordinating with the suppliers timely so that there will be no problem in the orders.

3) Data:

Any lacking in data can affect the management of the supply chain. In the time of crises,

it is important to have open, complete, clear and high quality data. This helps to measure

the performance and also solve the problem of complex supply system, as the data will be

shared with the supplier as soon as received and things will take place in an integrated

manner.

4) Supplier insights:

Supplier search tool provides the information to the countries that where the needed item

is available at what cost, and have purchasing been done by that suppliers in the past or

not. These kinds of tool provide supplier insights that can help for government to respond

to the procurement in such crisis.

5) Civic monitoring:

During Covid-19, it was also important that civil society must monitor the activities of

government to avoid any sort of corruption. For this, the data must be shared with the

civils. Open budget plans can help to give public the information about procurement and

spending of the government, and analyze that how government respond to the crisis.
Q2. What are the key challenges discussed in article pertaining to procurement during COVID

19, just list it down, no explanation needed.

ANSWER:

Following are the key challenges discussed in the article pertaining to procurement during

COVID 19:

1. Governments are dealing with outdated systems and lack clear information and data, which

hinders their ability to be agile and save lives.

2. Stocks are rapidly decreasing while prices are increasing. It’s a suppliers’ market, not a

buyers’ market.

3. Procurement, especially for urgently needed medical equipment, can be slow.

4. Widespread price gouging, an influx of counterfeit items, cases of intermediaries winning

contracts and leaving governments in the lurch when they can’t fulfill the orders.

5. Even if authorities secure items, there are numerous hurdles to ensuring they reach hospitals

and help patients.

6. Difficulties when competing for supplies against private companies who aren’t bound by the

same bureaucratic procedures as the public sector. 

Q3. Discuss your views/key insights post reading this article regarding procurement and COVID

19 situation.

ANSWER:

The governments have faced issues regarding procurement during COVID 19. It was hurdle for

them to receive the required medical items at time and deliver them to the hospitals and other

places. These problems were because of outdated, unclear and lack of information. In this article,

some strategies have been discussed that can be helpful to make the procurement successful

during such outbreak or challenging times. The government can control the situation and can

receive the items they require by setting clear goals and priorities, making decision timely and

focusing on what’s important. Moreover, the government can implement laws and policies, this

will help to make the rules clear for purchasing. The data should be open and high quality for

correct information to be worked on. The government should also have supplier insights, it will

able them to know where the needed item is available and at what cost. It is also important for

countries to choose the right price as to save themselves from corruption. Using these strategies

the government can increase the pace of the procurement and receive the items when needed in

challenging situations.
COMPETETIVE EDGE:

The low-pricing strategy of our business will help us to gain competitive edge. We aim to

provide the same big brand clothes with same quality at much lower prices. This strategy will

make us popular among the audience and help us gain competitive edge.