UNICEF supports the Ministry of Health and Medical Education by purchasing 19 walk-in cold rooms to preserve vaccine potency for children

The journey of a vaccine from the factory to children is not an easy process. Procuring, transporting, storing, and delivering vaccines to children in all corners of the world is a complex process which needs a well-functioning cold chain system because of the need to maintain the vaccines within a certain temperature range to maintain their potency.

In 2020, Iran’s Ministry of Health and Medical Education carried out an inventory assessment of the country’s cold chain system to identify the capacity and availability of adequate number of walk-in cold rooms (WiCs) which are specialized large cold spaces for storing vaccines. The assessment was conducted in all districts of the country with a population of over 200,000. Following this needs assessment, in 2023, as part of a joint effort towards strengthening the national immunization system for children, UNICEF in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, prioritized 19 districts and medical universities for the installation of walk-in cold rooms. In the first phase of the process, 9 WiCs were installed in 9 districts and medical universities in the country, namely, Isfahan, Hormozgan, East Azarbaijan, West Azarbaijan, Khorasan Razavi, Ardebil, Tehran, Sistan and Balouchestan and Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari. These Medical Universities and districts were prioritized based on different criteria including lack of sufficient WiCs, the population in a district, and specific climate conditions that impacts the quality of vaccine delivery and storage. Under the supervision of the technical experts of the MoHME’s immunization office and UNICEF, the 9 WiCs were procured and installed based on the highest global standards . With this intervention,  the delivery of safe and potent vaccines for children will be ensured.

This initiative, funded by the Access to Covid-19 Tools Accelerator and Humanitarian Action for Children (ACT-A-HAC), UNICEF, and Gavi, the vaccine alliance, will continue in 2024 with provision and installation of another 10 walk-in cold rooms across the country. In addition to providing equipment, UNICEF’s technical support includes training and capacity building of health staff to ensure that vaccines are managed in line with global norms and standards.