The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the momentum in driving the strategic purchasing agenda towards attaining UHC around the globe. Our sub-Saharan African audience is interested in knowing whether strategic purchasing is relevant in the COVID-19 response. Specifically, how countries are re/allocating funding for the COVID-19 response and if there has been any change(s) in the public finance management (PFM) act to facilitate quick decision-making during the pandemic. For this reason, SPARC put together a lessons learned document to serve as a platform for sharing knowledge on best practices in strategic purchasing during the pandemic. The lessons highlighted in the document emanate from a series of virtual engagements (Twitter chats & webinars) facilitated by SPARC, featuring a mix of policymakers and technical experts. The result is quite a rich collection of messages, lessons and information on how countries utilized their limited resources, with limited and constantly changing information on the virus.