The Mérieux Foundation
The International Federation of Biosafety Associations is pleased to welcome the Mérieux Foundation as an official Observer organization of the IFBA. The Mérieux Foundation is an independent family foundation with public interest status, chaired by Alain Mérieux. Its mission is to contribute to global health by strengthening the local capacities of developing countries to reduce the impact of infectious diseases that affect vulnerable populations, particularly mothers and children. Present in some twenty countries in West Africa, the Indian Ocean, the Caribbean, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East, the Mérieux Foundation focuses its action on four objectives: increasing access to diagnosis for vulnerable populations, enhancing local applied research capabilities, encouraging knowledge-sharing and improving conditions for mothers and children, taking a global health approach.
The Mérieux Foundation works to increase access to diagnosis for vulnerable populations by enhancing local capacities. Biosecurity and Biosafety are essential aspects to strengthen laboratories and involve developing their infrastructure, equipment and training.
To support local public institutions laboratories in developing countries, the Mérieux Foundation has created nine laboratories of excellence with a high biosafety level and renovated a large number of diagnostic testing laboratories in outlying regions in West Africa, America, Asia, and Middle East.
Knowledge sharing, including courses and e-learning, is also a strategic area of focus for the Mérieux Foundation. Through our projects in the field, our teams developed high-calibre training for laboratory staff, including biosecurity and biosafety workshops. E-learning module on biosecurity and biosafety were developed and webcasts from our conferences and courses are available on our platforms. To catalyse the impact of training, the Mérieux Foundation builds laboratory networks at national and regional levels for international cooperation to share experience and pool skills. 
For more information, please visit www.fondation-merieux.org
