-BSL3 Laboratory Inauguration, April 25, 2008, Institut Pasteur Cambodia, Phnom Penh, Cambodia - Mrs. Rama YADE, French State Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Human Rights, and Dr MAM Bun Heng, Cambodian State Secretary of Ministry of Health, inaugurated on April 25th a Bio Safety Level 3 laboratory at Institut Pasteur of Cambodia.
The BSL3 laboratory is composed of four modules for studying respiratory viruses, arboviruses and emerging viruses, HIV and retroviruses, mycobacteria and TB bacillus as well as an animalery A3. It represents the biggest complex of Biosafety level 3 in South-East Asia. The BSL3 laboratory has been built thanks to a financing of 1 million of euros from France: a subvention of the Ministry of Health and a loan subscribed to AFD by Institut Pasteur of Cambodia.
A major subvention from the Ministry of Health of France and a loan subscribed to AFD by Institut Pasteur of Cambodia made possible this laboratory, which cost ascends to approximately of 1 million Euros. In a context of threat of pandemics such as avian flu, this laboratory comes to strengthen the overall capacity of SISEA network givens the improved capacity of analysis of infections diseases that it represents. Thus this new facility brings us closer to reaching SISEA’s overall goal: To contribute to the improvement of the detection and handling of epidemic situations in the region.
From left to right, Dr JL Sarthou, Director of Institut Pasteur Cambodia; Mrs R Yade, French State Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Human Rights; Dr R Bruzzone, CEO of HKU-Pasteur Research Centre; Dr Y Charpak, Director of the International Affairs of Institut Pasteur and Mr JF Desmazieres, Ambassador of France.
