The World Refrigeration Day (WRd) is celebrated every June 26 to raise awareness about the importance of refrigeration and air conditioning in modern society. The 2025 edition, themed “Pierce the Bubbles,” promotes responsible and sustainable technology choices in the cooling sector to ensure the well-being of present and future generations. In Cameroon, the event took place on July 25, 2025, in Douala, organised by APFCC (Association des professionnels de froid et climatisation) in collaboration with the U-3ARC (Union des Associations Africaine des Acteurs de la Réfrigération et de la Climatisation). It featured two main components: an exhibition fair showcasing the expertise, innovation, local production, and training initiatives of refrigeration companies, and a conference aimed at generating policy-relevant recommendations. Key topics discussed included regulation, food security, health, employment, environment, gender inclusion, cold chain systems, and renewable energy solutions.
One of the highlights was the presentation of the MINADER partner Jean Bertrand ATANGANA on the strategic importance of the cold chain for sustainable agricultural development in Cameroon. he emphasises existing partnerships such the AGRI COOL project, the orientations of the National Agricultural Investment Plan (PNIA 2020–2030), and key cold chain stages: harvesting, packaging, transport, storage, and distribution. Major benefits include reducing post-harvest losses, improving product quality, enhancing food security, and creating jobs, while main challenges involve insufficient infrastructure, high costs, lack of training, and limited energy access. The presentation calls for greater investment, capacity building, and development of affordable technologies.
Ina Colombo from the IIR focused on presenting the SophiA technologies installed at the Edea hospital of the AD LUCEM Foundation that she did visit the day before World Refrigeration Day and shared a newly developed video from that visit during her presentation. Watch the video
On this occasion, the flyer of AGRI-COOL has been distributed on the stand shared with the APFCC with the SophiA and IIR communication materials.
Videos from the IIR World Cold Day and AGRI-COOL demonstration sites were shown throughout the event, particularly during the APFCC awards ceremony.
