Ethiopian Airlines announced that it has received IATA’s Center of Excellence for Independent Validators in Pharmaceutical Logistics (CEIV Pharma) certification as an airline and ground handling in December 2021.

Ethiopian Airlines is the first airline in Africa to receive the CEIV pharma certification.

The carrier noted that achieving this "will further improve" its goal in providing efficient & effective transportation of pharmaceuticals throughout its pharma network including Brussels, Shanghai, Johannesburg, Paris, Seoul, Lagos, Lusaka, Beijing, Hong Kong, Maastricht, Chicago & Addis Ababa.

"We are delighted to receive this important global certification, IATA CEIV Pharma Certificate, which is a strong assurance of one of the highest global standards in the aviation and logistics industries," said Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam.

"With an annual capacity of more than a million tons, our global air cargo and logistics hub in Addis Ababa has various special cargo handling facilities like Pharma and Life Science, Live Animals, Perishable cargo, live sea food, dangerous goods etc. Accordingly, we have been working very hard on our Pharma and Life Science handling facility to meet global standards in technology, processes and trainings," he added, noting that the IATA CEIV Pharma Certification has come at an "opportune time" for Ethiopian Cargo and Logistics team as they continue to play key global role in the transportation of life saving COVID-19 vaccines around the world and particularly in the continent of Africa.

Ethiopian, in recent years, has invested heavily in infrastructure, equipment, people, system and processes to enhance its pharmaceutical core handling capabilities throughout its pharma network.

It said cold storage areas in these freight facilities are dedicated for the handling of pharmaceuticals & healthcare products and armed with a dedicated climate control ranging between -30OC to +25OC ⁠— also monitored through a smart web-based system that allows real-time management of all zones with a capability to trigger SMS, Phone Call & email in case of an emergency.

"The strategic and geographical location of the home base airport of Ethiopian Airlines located at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia makes it highly preferable for the transportation of highly temperature-sensitive products with year-round natural temperature stability ranging between +15OC to +25OC, which will play an important role to minimize potential temperature deviation through the value chain," Ethiopian added.

It said it has also deployed smart cool dollies to ensure smooth transportation of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical products from the warehouse to the aircraft & vice versa with a capability to maintain an internal temperature between -29OC to +27OC.