Kyrgyzstan

Background

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In March 2005, Kyrgyzstan’s Supreme Court annulled the results of parliamentary elections that were widely believed to have been rigged, setting off a chain of events culminating in the ouster of President Askar Akayev.  Government expenditures on health, education and social protection are low; persistent poverty, especially among children, is a national issue.

Issues facing children in Kyrgyzstan

• Vitamin-A deficiency is widespread among children under five. Rising anaemia rates are resistant to large-scale fortification programmes because so much flour comes from household sources or very small mills.

• Communicable diseases like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS are increasing. 

• A growing number of children are placed in institutions, deprived of contact with their families.

• The juvenile justice system is in need of reform. Serious questions have been raised about the treatment of minors while in police custody.

• In rural areas, the practices of bride kidnapping and forced marriage persist. Domestic abuse and child neglect are also frequently reported.

• Dropout rates are increasing, especially among girls forced into marriage.  Migrant children have little access to schools, and poor families cannot afford the unofficial monthly fees charged for textbooks and other expenses.

Activities and results for children

• At the 2004 National Conference on Child Poverty in Kyrgyzstan, officials from the highest levels of government declared that eliminating child poverty would be a top priority over the next decade.

• Kyrgyzstan has adopted the international definition of live birth, thus improving reliability of data on infant mortality.

• UNICEF and its partners have trained doctors in emergency obstetric and neonatal care. The importance of exclusive breastfeeding is emphasized at 27 hospitals officially certified as ‘Baby Friendly’.

• The Ministry of Health worked with UNICEF to deliver vitamin A supplements to nearly half a million new mothers and children under five.

• Kyrgyzstan is polio-free and had only three measles cases reported in 2004.

• To improve early childhood development, UNICEF and its partners have trained health-care professionals, translated resources into Kyrgyz and Russian, and trained families in better parenting practices.

• UNICEF and its partners helped provide equipment and training to better monitor salt iodization rates.

• Programmes promoting youth participation have helped disseminate essential information about HIV/AIDS to young people throughout the country.