UNICEF and the Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic inaugurated the new cold room for storing vaccines in Sokuluk district of Chui region. The UNICEF office in Kyrgyzstan reports.
It is the first of 11 new storage rooms being installed across Kyrgyzstan with support from the Canadian Government. The total cost of the equipment and installation of 11 rooms exceeds 35 million soms.
Deputy Minister of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic Arykbaeva Bubujan, Ambassador of Canada to Kyrgyzstan Alan Hamson and UNICEF Representative in Kyrgyzstan a.i. Cristina Brugiolo participated in the official inauguration ceremony.
In his speech, the Deputy Minister of Health Arykbaeva Bubujan, expressed gratitude to the Ambassador Alan Hamson and UNICEF for their assistance in strengthening the healthcare system of Kyrgyzstan, in improving the quality of immunization in order to protect the health of children and the population.
«Cold chambers have been delivered to all regions according to the distribution plan. They will make a huge contribution to the response to the measles outbreak, when the country will receive additional doses of the rubella measles vaccine,» Deputy Minister Arykbaeva emphasized.
The cold rooms will be installed in Batken, Chui, Issyk-Kul, Jalal-Abad, Naryn, and Osh regions.
«Canada is proud to sponsor this project to enhance Kyrgyzstan’s capacity to store and distribute vaccines and respond swiftly to public health challenges. Reliable cold storage will also boost confidence in vaccines and encourage people to participate more in vaccination programmes, improving health outcomes» Ambassador of Canada to Kyrgyzstan Alan Hamson noted.
The rooms maintain constant temperatures between +2 and +8, essential for the proper storage of the majority of vaccines and medicines.
«Our ultimate goal is to ensure that children of Kyrgyzstan have access to safe and effective vaccines. And improving storage, delivery and administration of the vaccines is a critical part of this work» Cristina Brugiolo said.
All of the chambers are anticipated to be installed by March 2024.
