“Track and Trace” system for medicine to launch in Kurdistan Region

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – As highlighted by a recent two-day workshop, the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Ministry of Health is digitizing its health infrastructure in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), according to a statement from the Kurdish government’s media department.

As part of the initiative, medicines are tracked digitally from the point of production to the point of use by patients. For the purpose of future health insurance and services, citizens will receive identity cards and health accounts.

Health Minister Dr. Saman Barzanji said that among the objectives for the upcoming year are to combat corruption and improve efficiency and transparency by introducing the digital "Track & Trace" system for health cards and prescription drugs.

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Representative for the Kurdistan Region, Dr. Wael Hatahet, reaffirmed WHO's continued support for the KRG and emphasized their technical assistance to enhance the health sector. The emphasis will be on implementing effective international standards and strategies.

This latest initiative is part of a growing digitization agenda by the KRG’s Ninth Cabinet, with an electronic banking system called “MyAccount” and a gender violence prevention mobile application called “Safe You” being other recent examples.

In June, the Cabinet also set up a business registration portal that slashes the cost of registration by 80 percent and expedites registration to take only 24 hours to complete.