WHO, the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) and the Japanese Government officially handed over US$ 150 0000 worth of essential laboratory equipment to Bulgaria's National Center for Infectious and Parasitic Diseases on 11 April 2024 as part of a broad programme to support the country's health systems in providing health protection and care for a high number of refugees from Ukraine.
Alongside specialized technical support to strengthen the country’s emergency response, this equipment will help increase capacity to detect and prevent the spread of many infectious diseases – such as measles, hepatitis and cholera – that could pose a particular threat to displaced people living in crowded conditions.
The donated laboratory equipment, which includes polymerase chain reaction, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and biochemistry analysers, as an integrated system, can test for a broad spectrum of infectious agents. This versatility makes it an indispensable and universal tool in infectious disease surveillance, outbreak investigation and routine diagnostics.
Developing vaccination guidance
Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Bulgaria has granted Ukrainian refugees with temporary protection status the same access to health-care services as Bulgarian citizens. Over the past 2 years, more than 2.4 million Ukrainians have arrived in Bulgaria. Of these, 179 270 have received temporary protection registrations. As of March 2024, approximately 72 775 refugees had remained in the country.
“With thanks to the Bulgarian Government for sheltering Ukrainian citizens and for ensuring their equal rights to health care by law. This project is not just a set of supplies and equipment, but a vivid testimony of global cooperation and the commitment to achieving a better, sustainable future for generations to come,” commented ASEF Executive Director Toru Morikawa.
With support from ASEF and local nongovernmental implementing partners, the WHO Country Office in Bulgaria has also assisted the Government of Bulgaria in developing vaccination guidance for children from Ukraine. The guidance considers available data on any doses missed according to the vaccination calendar of Ukraine, and aligns with the requirements stated in the vaccination calendar of Bulgaria.
The partners have also conducted activities to inform the refugee community about the Bulgarian immunization requirements and how to access vaccination services to ensure high uptake and broad protection, reduce the risk of possible vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks, and enable refugee children to attend local schools.
“The support from ASEF strengthens all levels of Bulgaria’s response, from advocacy at the policy level down to all levels of the community,” said Guillaume Simonian, Representative of the WHO Country Office in Bulgaria.
WHO has also worked closely with the Ministry of Health and other partners to ensure refugees have access to a general practitioner to provide overall health protection and care services, given the high levels of chronic illness and disability among the refugee population.
As the number of Ukrainian refugees steadily rises in Bulgaria, so too does the need for health systems to be resilient and prepared, taking into account the hard lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic.