Dulas Can Provide the Final Piece in Plan to Vaccinate Over a Quarter of a Billion Children

A UK renewable energy firm is calling out to figures including David Cameron and Bill Gates to provide the final piece in their plan to vaccinate more than a quarter of a billion children against killer diseases like tuberculosis, measles and diphtheria.

At June’s GAVI Alliance “Saving Children’s Lives” conference, world leaders and business people pledged US$4.3 billion to immunize at-risk children in developing countries.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has committed $1.3 billion (£814 million) and philanthropist Bill Gates $1 billion (£616 million) to save 1.4 million lives.

In an appearance on BBC’s Newsnight programme, Microsoft owner Gates and CEO of GlaxoSmithKline Andrew Witty said now the funding was in place for vaccines, they “just need the solar powered fridges to store them.”

For nearly 30 years, Wales-based Dulas has been saving lives in the most remote areas of the developing world with solar powered fridges, which help crucial vaccinations reach people living off the power grid.

Dulas solar vaccine refrigerators are being used for vaccination programmes worldwide supported by international humanitarian organizations’ such as GOAL.

Ernest Halilov from GOAL said: ”Dulas Solar Vaccine refrigerators are relied on to keep vaccines cold where there is no supporting infrastructure. We are pleased to have Dulas experts working with us and their quality and service is remarkable. People in the most remote areas where there is no electricity are able to be vaccinated against disease and with the help of this secure and solid organisation millions of lives are saved.”

In 2004, Dulas’ World Health Organisation-accredited solar vaccine refrigerators won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2004. The company was also awarded the Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy in 2008.

Dulas solar vaccine refrigerators are already being used in GAVI-financed supported vaccination programmes throughout the world.

Projects in isolated parts of Nigeria, Peru, India and Pakistan are seeing solar panelled fridges being packaged and transported by helicopter, boat and even yaks, in order to access those in need of immunization.

GAVI has already vaccinated 288 million children in 19 countries while a recent Save the Children Vaccines for All report argued that immunizing children was ''arguably the greatest health success story of the last century.”

Cath Peasley, Head of Solar International at Dulas said: “The GAVI Alliance is to be applauded for its commitment to the ongoing battle to immunize millions of at-risk children in the developing world. Vaccines often need to reach those in hard-to-reach places and Dulas systems are delivering life-saving solutions to people in remote locations across the world as part of our everyday operations. It must also be remembered that a clean, reliable water supply will prevent many of those diseases being vaccinated against. Again it is solar technology that can drive water pumps in remote areas than can save lives and vastly improve quality of life for the poorest of the poor.

“We’ve got huge experience in successful projects of this nature and are committed to the Millennium Development Goals as part of UN Global Compact. We pride ourselves as a great British business who works with an innovative product in extraneous circumstances; we would love to help GAVI achieve its ambitious aims by working together to save more lives and would welcome the opportunity to help them meet their urgent need.”