JICA's SME/SDG Business Support Program

The aging of social infrastructure has become a serious problem in the Kyrgyz Republic. Regarding health and medical care, non-communicable diseases (NCD) such as cancer, heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, and chronic respiratory disease account for 80% of all deaths. The burden on the domestic economy is enlarging due to the rapid increase of medical expenses, social support, welfare expenses, decrease in labor productivity, and turnover due to NCD illness. Furthermore, it is becoming mainstream in the Kyrgyz Republic to purchase medications directly at the pharmacy without going to a hospital. Since pharmacists tend to sell medicines freely without a prescription, it is to be desired for pharmacists to improve their skill and knowledge of ingredients, side effects, and considering prescription accidents.

In response, as a measure against NCD and improving medication distribution, the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic has introduced obligations for pharmacists to participate in lifetime education since 2018. The aim of this initiative is to improve pharmacists’ ethics, knowledge, and skills. thereby improving the quality of medical services they provide. At present, Ministry of Health is developing professional standards for pharmacists, as there is a shortage of teaching materials and skilled instructors, and access to medical education in rural areas. The current medical training is conducted mainly in urban areas.

To tackle the issues, the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic announced the “Program for Public Health and Health System Development” from 2019 to 2030, with the motto “Healthy Person – A Prosperous Country.” It promotes the policy to facilitate access to training and education for all medical workers by utilizing the information and communication technologies by 2030. The Ministry of Health has set up its ICT department and is actively working on introducing ICT in the medical field, but due to the shortage of a national budget, contributions from supporting organizations and private companies are also essential.

Under such circumstances, it was confirmed that the know-how of pharmacist education had a certain effect on improving pharmacists’ ability during the pilot training conducted in 2019. In the survey, through the implementation of the training, the project will confirm the local suitability of this know-how, improve pharmacists’ abilities, contribute to formulate professional standards for pharmacists, and introduce the State Certification for pharmacists. At the same time, the project will develop a business plan to provide lifetime training for pharmacists.

State Certification Exam in 2022

E-learning training for Pharmacists 2021