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 SophiA project by Ina Colombo from the IIR, which focused on the SophiA technologies installed at the Edea hospital of the AD LUCEM Foundation. Ina had visited the hospital the day before World Refrigeration Day and shared a newly developed video from that visit during her presentation. (see the first 30 seconds of the video)
On this occasion, promotional material from SophiA was distributed a6> distributed at the stand shared with the APFCC.
During the closing ceremony speech, U3ARC President Madi Sakanke presented the challenges and recommendations for training refrigeration technicians, as outlined in the upcoming NaRa (Natural Refrigerants in Africa) IIR policy brief, co-authored by U3ARC.
Videos of the World Refrigeration Day of the IIR and the sites of demonstration SophiA sites were broadcast throughout the event.
