A community leader in Kyrgyzstan issues an urgent call to fellow villagers: Get vaccinated

Abdyjapar Safarbekov has lived in Ak-Jar, a rough-hewn settlement known as a novostroika, with his family for more than 17 years. This settlement, consisting of 1900 households with 5600 inhabitants, is located on the outer limits of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan’s capital, along with 47 other settlements established in 2005. 

Like thousands of other Kyrgyz citizens, Abdyjapar considers himself an internal migrant. He moved to the capital mainly for economic reasons, hoping for a better life. Bishkek and Osh are popular destinations for internal migration and internal migrants make up a reported 35% of Bishkek’s population. Most of them live in informal settlements around Bishkek, which means their numbers may even be higher than officially reported. 

As Abdyjapar explains, he struggles to access health and social services due to a registration system known as propiska, which requires migrants to register to receive public services such as health care, water, education, and energy.

To obtain city registration, internal migrants must receive legal status for their homes and complete additional paperwork, which is a costly and time-consuming process, especially in light of precarious, seasonal or part-time employment. 

Vaccination hampered by socioeconomic challenges 

Abdyjapar was elected as head of the village last year to solve the socioeconomic difficulties of his community. Among his activities in this role, he actively promotes COVID-19 and routine vaccination among villagers. As he emphasizes, “I believe that vaccination can save lives.” 

“COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has been a real challenge amid all the rumours and disinformation about the vaccine,” continues Abdyjapar. “The reluctance stems partly from myths such as the pandemic being a foreign conspiracy. The hesitancy is also based on cultural and religious beliefs.” 

To counter myths and misinformation, Abdyjapar involves religious leaders to deliver sermons, to remove doubts and fears, as part of an awareness campaign. After a detailed conversation with vaccine-deniers about the importance of vaccination for their overall health, villagers usually agree and accept the shot. 

Abdyjapar has also helped mobile immunization teams organize vaccination sessions for his community members and encourages people to take advantage of this opportunity to be vaccinated in line with the national immunization schedule and against COVID-19. 

Mobile immunization teams help to improve access to immunization

With technical assistance from WHO, health authorities in Kyrgyzstan established mobile immunization teams to improve access to immunization services and COVID-19 vaccination during the pandemic for people living in remote, hard-to-reach settlements and for children of internal migrants in large urban settlements such as Ak-Jar. 

The mobile immunization teams have been vital in filling gaps in immunization coverage caused by a disruption in the provision of routine immunization services during the pandemic, tailored carefully to the needs of the population. 

For example, in the period May–December 2020, the mobile teams vaccinated 155 003 people, including 80 153 children under one year of age, and 18 949 adults with the vaccine against tetanus and diphtheria (Td vaccine). 

In 2021, teams involved in 6 rounds of mobile immunization sessions vaccinated an additional 171 161 people, including 158 047 children under 16 years of age. The mobile teams also provide vaccination against COVID-19. 

Any disruption of immunization services, even for short periods, can result in an accumulation of susceptible individuals and a higher likelihood of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks. Such outbreaks may result in severe illness and deaths and an increased burden on health systems already strained by the response to the COVID-19 outbreak. 

Monitoring visits to understand local needs

Since the start of the pandemic, the WHO Country Office for Kyrgyzstan together with the Republican Center for Immunoprophylaxis has conducted regular monitoring visits across the country to provide technical support to remote areas and district immunologists as well as to public health services for better planning of the work of mobile teams, and for receiving feedback from field workers on their needs. 

The monitoring teams have noted, for example, that all required infection prevention and control (IPC) measures have been strictly followed during mobile immunization sessions in the field. In addition, all mobile immunization teams have been equipped with sanitizers, personal protective equipment (PPE), and first aid kits, with funding from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, for COVID-19-related activities.

Abdyjapar thanks WHO and other partners for organizing the mobile immunization teams. “I am grateful to our health care workers for their hard work and dedication. Many people appreciate your efforts so much and I am very grateful to have selfless people like you working at the frontline,” says Abdyjapar.