Are Supply Chains Proactive? Understanding Challenges in Combatting Emerging Pandemics, Lessons from the Covid 19: A Literature Review

The supply chain is an important pillar in delivering value to the utmost consumer in any sector. Where there are disruptions in the chain more so global supply chains, the world productive sectors will be rendered to jeopardy and meeting objectives of right quality, time, quantity, place and price will remain thought of. Supply chains remain imperative in fighting emerging pandemics but while this is so, diversification of a robust chain coupled with stringent parties able to deliver continues to be a major setback to many economies due to emerging pandemics. The 2020 online report of Ernst & Young LLP indicated that at least 72% of supply chains reported negative effects due to Covid 19 as firms closed operations, products failed to be delivered and prices soared high. In the IMF report of 2021, the global GDP of countries dropped by 3.9% between 2019 and 2020, with 32 of the 53 PEPFAR countries experiencing reductions in their GDP. Yet in literature, researchers remain silent on the challenges facing supply chains and whether chain firms are proactive in managing future pandemics remains a dire question given that scholars have concentrated on the effects of the pandemic. The purpose of the paper was to explore the challenges facing supply chains in combating emerging pandemics drawing experience from the recent novel corona virus. Based on the broken windows theory and desk study review methodology, we aver that High Costs, Supply Chain Complexity, Non-Visibility of Supply Chains, Emerging risks and Supply Chain Volatility are domineering challenges faced by chains in fighting emerging pandemics. We suggest a model of ramifications to the challenges and show that firms will need to be proactive in the future for emerging pandemics by observing key practices 1. Regionalizing the Supply Chain 2. Digitalizing the supply chain 3. Rethinking transparency & resilience. 4. Redesigning the Supply chain strategic architecture. We conclude that if supply chains have to be tools in fighting emerging pandemics, then stakeholders must recognize and mitigate these challenges. We further recommend stakeholders to pay attention in allocating resources to solve these challenges