Kyrgyzstan hosts European Immunization Week under the «Long Life for All» slogan

Bishkek, May 11, 2022 - The Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic, with support of the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, is hosting the European Immunization Week 2022 (EIW) in Kyrgyzstan from May 11 to May 18, 2022. The EIW is aimed at raising public awareness on immunization as one of the key preventive measures against communicable diseases. The theme of the 2022 European Immunization Week (EIW) is “Long Life for All”. It aims to emphasize the importance of equitable and broad access to vaccines, helping to ensure a long and healthy life for everyone.

For more than two hundred years, immunization has being helping the humanity to make the world safer, from the very first Smallpox vaccine (since 1798) to the latest mRNA vaccines used to prevent severe COVID-19 cases. Vaccines protect each of us individually and enable us to protect the collective health of all people as members of the global community.

The Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic identifies the Immunization Program as one of the priority Public Health programs and makes every effort to ensure equitable and sustainable access to quality immunization services for the population. Over the past few years, Kyrgyzstan, with technical support from WHO, UNICEF and GAVI, has introduced several new vaccines into the National Preventive Immunization Calendar: Pentavalent vaccine (DPT-VBH-HiB) in 2009, conjugated Pneumococcal vaccine (PCV) in 2016, inactivated Polio vaccine (IPV) in 2018 and Rotavirus vaccine in 2019.

“In public health, we know that vaccines do work and provide protection against many diseases, allowing children to be healthy. Every parent should know that his child will be protected through vaccination against those diseases for which reliable and safe vaccines are available. I would like to note that along with the work of the immunization units, 65 mobile teams will be involved in all regions to conduct routine and catch-up immunization of children and adults according to the calendar of preventive vaccinations; and also in connection with the Measles outbreak in the neighboring Republic of Tajikistan - during the EIW 2022 we will focus on Measles vaccination and take all necessary measures to prevent Measles import into the country”, said Alymkadyr Beisenaliyev, Minister of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic.

“Across the centuries, and all around the world, people from every background have been looking for ways to protect their children from illnesses. Vaccines provide this precious protection that all parents want for their little ones. Vaccines save the lives of up to 3 million children yearly. But there are still some children who miss out on immunization, putting them at risk. As we invest to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build health systems that reach every child,” – said Yulia Oleinik, acting UNICEF Representative in Kyrgyzstan. 

“Vaccines are one of the most cost-effective health tools ever invented: every Som spent on immunizing children returns up to 3,000 Soms. Immunization provides protection against most communicable diseases such as Diphtheria, Tetanus, Measles, Polio, Rubella, Pertussis, Viral Hepatitis B, Mumps, any of which can cause death or disability. Therefore, I personally urge everyone to take vaccination responsibly so that we can all work together to protect ourselves and others”, said Dr. Nazira Artykova, Representative/Head of WHO Office in Kyrgyzstan.