The CMA CGM Foundation pursues its humanitarian commitment in Africa with the shipment of two new PharmaBox units to Sudan and Chad

After departing from the port of Dunkirk on January 6, the two PharmaBox units have now arrived at the port of Kribi in Cameroon, a strategic logistics hub for Central Africa. They are currently being prepared for overland transport to their respective deployment sites in Sudan and Chad.

These two PharmaBox units will strengthen Action Against Hunger’s medical operations in regions facing major humanitarian crises, marked by insecurity, population displacement, and extreme climatic conditions.

This new deployment follows the installation of the first PharmaBox in Bangui, Central African Republic, where it has been operational since February 2025. Fully functional, it now enables Action Against Hunger to provide medical and nutritional care to 50,000 children and pregnant women each year, ensuring the availability of essential medicines and their storage under optimal conditions, despite logistical, climatic, and security constraints.

Developed by the CMA CGM Foundation in collaboration with Action Against Hunger, the PharmaBox is a 40-foot container converted into a mobile, energy-autonomous pharmacy. Its purpose is to ensure the safe storage of medication in humanitarian crisis zones, under optimal conditions:

• Temperature controlled between 20 and 25°C, with humidity below 65% to ensure proper preservation of medicines,
• Storage capacity of 22 m³, equivalent to 3 metric tons of medication, enabling treatment for 50,000 children and pregnant women per year per PharmaBox,
• Energy autonomy provided by a system of 10 photovoltaic solar panels, allowing operation without reliance on an electrical grid or fossil fuels,
• Mobility and ease of deployment, enabling rapid transport and relocation by sea, road, or rail according to humanitarian needs.

The CMA CGM Foundation leverages the logistical and technical expertise of the CMA CGM Group at every stage of the project: container supply and conversion, maritime and overland transport, on-site installation, and operational support for Action Against Hunger’s teams.

With these two new units bound for Sudan and Chad, the CMA CGM Foundation continues the progressive deployment of the PharmaBox units across Africa, building on the experience gained and the tangible impact observed in Bangui. The Foundation has also committed to making a total of 10 PharmaBox units available to Action Against Hunger. This initiative is part of a long-term partnership launched in 2012, which has already enabled the delivery of more than 7,500 metric tons of humanitarian supplies to the NGO’s fields of operation.

Through PharmaBox, the CMA CGM Foundation and Action Against Hunger are strengthening the humanitarian medical supply chain in a sustainable way, in support of the health and dignity of the most vulnerable populations.