Batken Oblast Vaccine Storage Facility is Equipped with a New Cold Room

UNICEF completed installation of a new cold room for storing of vaccines at the Batken oblast Centre of Disease Prevention and Sanitary Epidemiological Surveillance. The new 30 cubic meters room will enhance storage and distribution of life-saving vaccines in the oblast. The storage room was funded by the Canadian Government as part of an effort to strengthen the country’s response to public health challenges.

The official inauguration took place on April 3 with participation of UNICEF Representative a.i. in Kyrgyzstan Cristina Brugiolo.

According to the Deputy Plenipotentiary Representative of the President in Batken Oblast Janybek Isakov, this cold room will help improve storage and timely delivery of vaccines throughout our oblast benefiting more than half-a-million residents, including over 240,000 children.

The rooms maintain constant temperatures between +2 and +8, essential for the proper storage of the majority of vaccines and medicines. The equipment has received prequalification from the World Health Organization, ensuring compliance with all rigorous standards. Previous cold room had a capacity of 10 cubic meters and the current cold rooms have the capacity of 30 cubic meters, which allows to improve the stock magament and keep more vaccines.

“As we witness rising number of cases of measles throughout Kyrgyzstan, vaccination is one of the highest public health priorities concerning children. We are confident that improving storage and delivery of vaccines will contribute to fighting such infectious diseases and ensure uninterrupted supply of vaccines, so children could have access to life saving immunization” noted Cristina Brugiolo.

In total, UNICEF is installing 11 cold rooms in Batken, Chuy, Jalal-Abad, Naryn and Osh. These target areas were selected in coordination with the Ministry of Health based on the specific needs of each region. The total value of these facilities exceeds 35 million KGS.