The Government of Switzerland through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) purchased the medical equipment for the emergency departments of hospitals, basic equipment and cars for the family medicine centers for the total amount of 800’000 CHF within the project “Health Facilities Autonomy” supported by the Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic.

“It is so important that our contribution within our health projects gets the strong support of local authorities and personnel of the health facilities. I am very impressed by the level of commitment of all stakeholders, in particular the family doctors, the nurses and the management of the health facilities and also by the support of local authorities” – said Véronique Hulmann, Ambassador of Switzerland to the Kyrgyz Republic.

The “Health Facilities Autonomy” project is a contribution to the national programme "Den Sooluk" which has been implemented since 2015.  The project aims to improve access of rural population to medical services and to enhance the effectiveness and quality of health care services by increasing the autonomy of health care organizations and optimizing referral systems. The project implements activities for efficient use of infrastructure, financial, personnel and logistical resources. During this trip, the Swiss Ambassador also inaugurated laundry facilities of four hospitals. This is part of another project on infection control.

Around 50 doctors and 250 nurses provide medical care to more than 190 thousand people in these three rayons. The new medical equipment will improve efficiency and quality of medical care for the local population as well as access to medical services.

Switzerland is financing the Public Service Improvement project, which supported the implementation of a 35 Service Improvement Action Plans for a total of 91 million soms, including municipal contributions amounting to almost 28 million soms. The project aims to improve the efficient and quality of public services at local level.

The Swiss grant for the four municipalities mentioned above amounts 18 million soms, while the contribution of the municipalities amounts 4 million. Switzerland joins forces with the municipalities to finance priority projects identified through a participatory process involving all citizens and selected through a competitive process involving more than 40 municipalities. Service Improvement Action Plans describing how the project was selected, how maintenance and sustainability will be ensured, who the beneficiaries would be and how implementation will be monitored were submitted by the municipalities to a selection committee.

In Chon-Bagysh village of Sakaldy municipality, the drinking water system was rehabilitated and upgraded, enabling 450 households to be connected to the water system. In order to finance operational costs and maintenance, a fair tariff for drinking water was introduced after being discussed and approved by the citizens. In the Lenin municipality of Suzak rayon, a recreational park was rehabilitated and equipped with benches, LED lights and a playground for children. In Masy municipality, the kindergarten "Altyn-Beshik" was rehabilitated and equipped, allowing 181 children to benefit for pre-school education; 16 new staff was recruited and their salary will be financed by the municipality.

In Bostery municipality, classes adapted for childre with special needs were opened for the first time in the Issyk-Kul region. To ensure sustainability of the service, these classes were opened within the “Mamytov” school-gymnasium. By studying in such classes, children with special needs will benefit from quality education and communication with their peers. In Kumbel municipality, over 800 residents of a new suburban settlement could access safe drinking water thanks to the installation of a new drinking water supply system. To ensure the sustainability of the drinking water service provision, the municipality introduced innovative management decisions, including outsourcing and calculation of adequate tariff levels.

“It is crucial to keep in mind that improving service provision is an ongoing process. It is not only about procurement of new equipment or renovation of buildings. It is mainly about efficient, transparent and participatory management of local resources by local self-governments in order to ensure delivery of most needed and quality services to the population. The aim of the Swiss grant, which was complemented with local contribution, was to respond to immediate needs while developing mechanisms that enhance relations between citizens and local governments, enhance accountability of the local authorities and ensure sustainability of the infrastructures financed by the project", - said Véronique Hulmann, Ambassador of Switzerland to the Kyrgyz Republic, during her trip in the Jalal-Abad region.