Asunción, November 01, 2022 (PAHO/WHO). An essential donation of equipment and transportation was delivered to Paraguay within the framework of PAHO/WHO technical cooperation and the support of the United States government to mitigate the effects of the pandemic and accelerate access COVID-19 vaccines.
The donation will strengthen the national cold chain, the information systems, the communications component, and the extension of vaccination services to remote places of difficult access.
The handover event included the presence of the Minister of Public Health and Social Welfare, Julio Borba, the Vice-Minister of Stewardship and Health Surveillance, Lida Sosa, PAHO/WHO Representative in Paraguay, Marcelo Korc, the Minister Counselor of the U.S. Embassy in Paraguay, Amir Masliyah, the Director of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI), Héctor Castro, and technical teams of the EPI.
Mr. Korc acknowledged "the challenge that the Ministry and the Expanded Program on Immunization faced in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and the important role that health workers played" and emphasized "PAHO/WHO commitment to continue providing technical cooperation to contribute to the country's efforts to ensure that vaccines reach every corner of the country”. He also thanked the United States government for this donation.
Masliyah said that "this cooperation is part of other strategic cooperation that the U.S. government is offering Paraguay to mitigate and contain the effects of the pandemic." He also highlighted "the importance of the equipment and supplies delivered, which will ensure equitable access to safe and effective vaccines against COVID-19."
Minister Castro was thankful to receive the support of PAHO and the Government of the United States. "We receive this, not as a donation, but as a commitment. (…) We are confident that, with this support, we will obtain the results we expect."
This donation includes:
- Cold chain equipment to ensure the proper refrigeration of vaccines and maintain their quality: 500 vaccine carriers; 500 cold boxes for vaccine storage at the local level; 51 dual-mode refrigerators for vaccine conservation at destination point; and 500 temperature monitors.
- Means of transportation for transferring vaccines and vaccination brigades, to extend vaccination coverage and other health programs, mainly in vulnerable populations: two pickup trucks to support the Paraguayan Chaco regions and the Central department ; a mobile vaccinator unit; and 18 motorcycles with safety equipment for the regions of Caaguazú and Canindeyú.
- 41 computers to strengthen the immunization information system.
- 120 portable loudspeakers to contribute to the dissemination of promotional vaccination messages at the local level.
PAHO and its partners support the country's efforts to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by improving access to vaccination, mainly for the most vulnerable populations, both socially and economically. Technical cooperation is intended to support the deployment of vaccination brigades to strengthen the information system and vaccine safety surveillance, advocacy and social communication, and evidence generation, among others.
