Three South African concerns are part of a 15-member consortium which has been awarded a potential $7 billion contract in accordance with US President George Bush's Pepfar Plan to fight Aids.

They are the non-profit organisation AMFA, the black economic empowerment company Fuel Logistics Group and North West University.

The contract was announced quietly on September 28 by the US Agency for International Aid (USAid) on its website.

Strict instructions were issued to the consortium members not to mention the "potential amount" of the contract, which the consortium head office said was $7bn.

Called the Partnership for Supply Chain Management, the consortium's head office has also issued stringent restrictions on what the 15 members may tell the media, to avoid "misstatements at this sensitive time".

The President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar) was initiated in 2003 to implement Bush's pledge of $15bn to combat HIV/Aids internationally. The plan was plunged into controversy recently when a top UN official criticised it as being driven by Christian fundamentalist ideology.

The PCSM project aims to supply a wide range of medicines, including ARVs, to people in countries across the world, including Russia and Haiti, but mostly in Africa.

One of the obstacles it intends to overcome is the possibility of interruptions in take-up of ARVs due to factors such as the weather and civil wars. This leads to greater resistance in HIV.

It "will strengthen systems to deliver an uninterrupted supply of high-quality, low-cost products that will flow through a transparent, accountable system", says a media release.

All 15 members of the consortium have impressive resumés in practical experience in distributing medicines in difficult and hostile terrain. Most are US-based non-profit organisations and were selected by an "interagency panel", which included representatives from USAid and the US departments of health and defence.

The SA-based Affordable Medicines for Africa is singled out for its rapid response ability and provision of African manufactured medicines. A rapid response capability is one of the chief aims of the PSCM.

Fuel Logistics is described as "one of South Africa's top black economic empowerment companies", with 25 years of experience in distributing pharmaceuticals. It has 1 500 local enterprises and provides warehousing and related services to 350 multinational customers.

North West University vice-rector Professor Theuns Eloff said the contract would provide a massive injection for research capabilities. Quality control of medicines and Aids test kits would be its main contribution, through its Cenqam (Centre for Quality Assurance of Medicines).

New research and training facilities will be built and give the university a great boost towards sustaining itself commercially, the central challenge for South African universities.

Based on the winning proposal, the contract funds up to $77 million in system operating expenses and technical assistance over the first three years, says the USAid press release. The drugs and supplies handled by the system could total $500m or more over that same period.

In three years' time, the US will have a new president after its next elections in November 2008. The contract will be responsive to requests from countries and programmes in the field and will be adjusted accordingly, says the release.

SCMS will specifically provide "one-stop shopping" for programmes to obtain important HIV/Aids-related products and focus on presence on the ground.

USAid global coordinator Randall Tobias said: "The US government believes that without local, sustainable capacity, nations cannot fully 'own' the fight they must lead against HIV/Aids. This capacity is a prerequisite for national programmes that achieve results, monitor and evaluate their activities, and sustain their responses for the long-term."