Cambodia & Health : Annual Liaison Council of the Institut Pasteur du Cambodge

The Institut Pasteur du Cambodge (IPC) organized its annual Liaison Council on Friday, May 24, 2024, to evaluate the past year’s activities and strategise for the upcoming year.

Chaired this year by His Excellency Professor Koy Vanny, Secretary of State for Health, this council brought together ten permanent members from the Cambodian government, the Administration or the Universities of the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Director General of the Institut Pasteur in Paris, the French Ambassador to Cambodia, and representatives from WHO and UNICEF. Key partners of IPC, such as Calmette Hospital, Kantha Bopha Hospital, NIPH, CNM, IRD, etc. were also present as invited members, underscoring the collaborative spirit of the event.

After the opening by H.E. Professor Koy Vanny, and the speeches of Mr. Vincent Richard of the Institut Pasteur and Mr. Pierre Vincent, Advisor on Cooperation and Culture at the French Embassy, Prof. André Spiegel presented IPC’s activities and future perspectives. highlighting IPC’s mission to contribute to disease prevention and treatment through research, public health initiatives, training, and health services.

Underline IPC’s research strengths, Professor Spiegel elaborated on the work of the institute’s five research units. These units are focused on studying infectious diseases and emerging pathogens prevalent in Cambodia and Southeast Asia, including SARS-CoV-2, influenza, chikungunya, dengue, HIV, hepatitis, rabies, malaria, tuberculosis, and antimicrobial resistance. Furthermore, to support public health, IPC operates three national and international reference centres and the largest rabies prevention centre in Cambodia, which provided post-exposure treatment to 60,476 individuals last year.

Finally, IPC’s Medical Biology Laboratory and Laboratory of Environment and Food Safety (LEFS) deliver health services through rigorous testing and analysis.

Strengthening its academic ties, IPC collaborates with the University of Health Sciences (UHS) on various training programs, including a Master of Infectious Diseases program. This collaboration highlights IPC’s commitment to education and capacity building in the health sector, ensuring that future health professionals are well equipped to tackle emerging health challenges.

Concluding his presentation, Professor Spiegel outlined the IPC 2030 project, focusing on long-term strategic planning and restructuring. This initiative aims to enhance IPC’s capacity to address public health challenges effectively, reinforcing the institute’s vision for the future. The IPC 2030 project is designed to ensure that IPC remains at the forefront of health innovation and service delivery.

During the discussions which followed the presentation, the members of the Liaison Council highlighted the quality, diversity and usefulness of the work carried out by the IPC as well as the strong interactions with the MoH structures. Finally, the Council showed great interest in the IPC 2030 project and gave its support to this initiative.

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Participants

Permanent members of the Liaison Council are representatives of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MoEYS) represented this year by the Director of School Health Department of MoEYS, His Excellency the French ambassador represented this year by the Counsellor for Cooperation and Cultural Affairs of the French Embassy in Cambodia, the rector of the University of Health Sciences (UHS) represented this year by the Head of the Secretariat of UHS, the rector of the Royal University of Agriculture, the Chief of Health and Nutrition, the President of Institut Pasteur in Paris, represented this year by the Head of Programs for Promotion Division of the International Affair Department of Institut Pasteur in Paris and a representative of World Health Organization (WHO) represented this year by the Coordinator of Mekong Malaria Elimination.

Invited members are, the Regional Advisor Pacific-Asia of the International Affair Department of the Institut Pasteur in Paris, the Attaché for Scientific and Academic Cooperation of the French Embassy in Cambodia, the General Director of Calmette Hospital, the Director of Kantha Bopha Foundation, the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Economy and Finances, and other Cambodian health institutions and universities (RUPP, CENAT, CNM, IRD, NIPH).