The Agence Française de Développement (AFD) has funded 2 million euros through the ECOMORE II project to strengthen a laboratory in Cambodia and other four countries in Southeast Asia including Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, and Vietnam to fight against Covid-19.
The Agence Française de Développement (AFD) has funded 2 million euros through the ECOMORE II project to strengthen a laboratory in Cambodia and other four countries in Southeast Asia including Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, and Vietnam to fight against Covid-19.
According to the press release by AFD on April 1st, the ECOMORE II project, conducted by Institut Pasteur du Cambodge (IPC), aims at measuring the implementation of Covid-19 testing and the responses by Southeast Asian countries. The AFD anticipates that the funding will give a boost to the five countries’ frontline laboratories that are playing a major role to fight against the pandemic.
AFD Regional Director of Southeast Asia, Yazid Benzaid, said in the press release, “It is essential to delay as much as possible the peak of the epidemic in Southeast Asia by supporting partner countries’ control policies and strategies on the spread of the virus through laboratory capacity building.”
The AFD said that with this funding, seven laboratories of partner countries, including the Institut Pasteur du Cambodge, are able to purchase testing kits and protection gear for employees, to train human resources, and enhance knowledge and testing capacity through current molecular diagnosis support for data processing in partnership with the Institute for Research for Development to strengthen the surveillance of the epidemic.
Dr. Laurene Baril, Director of the Institut Pasteur of Cambodia and International Technical Expert of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated, “The funding can help any departments of virology laboratory and public welfare sectors of the partner countries deal with the healthcare crisis caused by Covid-19. With the partners across the region, we exchange experiences and development strategy on how to manage Covid-19 situation.”
She added that, “IPC’s laboratory is one of all the seven advanced laboratories of the World Health Organization, and our technical skills will pay a contribution to all of the partnered laboratories.”
Professor Pierre-Marie Girard, International Director of the Institut Pasteur International Network, said that the ECOMORE II project indicates a clear and crucial mission to actively collaborate with all networks across the globe to fight against Covid-19 and protect the life of its people.
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