Dear Colleagues,
I am delighted to be writing to you today, being International Workers Day. I use the opportunity to celebrate your passion, sacrifice, and commitment to ensuring that life-savings health products reach the last mile where they are most needed. We are a community of over 8,000 professionals across 150 countries, and thanks to our collective and continued teamwork, IAPHL is serving millions of people across the globe.
The transition…
As you all know, Walter and Rachel have been incredible in steering the association through the last couple of years. We are grateful for the work they have done and the tremendous progress recorded under their watch. We wish them well as they move ahead and we will continue to tap into their rich expertise as we move ahead. Please find the time to celebrate them for their service and contribution to IAPHL.
A new Secretariat has emerged with Jamie Thivener (Program Officer), Natty Kokolo (Global Community Manager) and myself, with Carmit Kaddem providing oversight to the team. Together with the former team, we have been working through the current transition and we are excited about the future. (I have also received lots of warm welcome and well wishes over the past few weeks. Thank you all for everything)
Worthy of note also are our esteemed chapter leaders from the countries upon whose exceptional sacrifice of their time and resources the chapters have continued to grow. I have had the opportunity to interact with them and I look forward to a very productive collaboration with each one of the chapters and their leadership.
Furthermore, I have had the privilege of meeting our Governing Council, funders, sponsors, and partners. These teams are a combination of expertise and excellence with keen eyes for the execution of high-quality programs with tangible impact on the supply chain of health products and the community. With their commitment and support, I assure you that both the secretariat and the association are in good hands.
Moving Forward…
As an association, our members/people will continue to be our greatest and surest asset. We are a community of diverse groups of professionals. These groups range from veterans who steer the affairs of governments, organizations, and projects across several countries, to experts at the last mile who deliver service to clients/patients across numerous health facilities, including the academia/students in different institutions. I have no doubt that the potentials herein are huge and it is an opportunity to be converted to value at scale.
We have set our eyes on harnessing these resources to continuously evolve new mixes of offerings. We are committed to unlocking the values in our connectedness, and diversity. To do this we will take steps to bring home incremental gains while keeping our eyes trained on the opportunity for big leaps.
In the coming weeks, our focus is on re-/engaging the vision, mission, and value of the association. We are fortunate to have a 3-year strategic plan that is already guiding the secretariat and the association from 2023 to 2025. Guided by this strategy document, we will first look inward by asking specific questions to establish a new and/or common impetus to pursue the scale we desire.
The future is here and bright and we are eager and committed to take it. We are aware that the journey ahead is the kind of marathon (with many sprints in between)that may challenge our resolve. I am however most certain that as we work together as a team, an elite performance is assured.
Happy Workers Day!
Sincerely,
Omole, Timilehin, Executive Director, IAPHL