Fighting against infectious diseases since 1967

The world is undergoing profound changes, leading to crises, which multiply in all regions. Whether political, security-related, demographic, economic and climatic in nature, all crises contribute to worsening the health conditions of affected populations, creating an ideal breeding ground of development and spread for epidemics. Low-income countries are the hardest-hit by these increasingly complex contexts, with mothers and children at the forefront.

This is why the Mérieux Foundation, an independent foundation with public interest status, has been fighting infectious diseases affecting vulnerable populations in resource-limited countries since its creation in 1967.

Operating directly in more than 25 countries, it is committed to strengthening local capacities, particularly in clinical biology, in order to improve access to care, surveillance and response to epidemics.

The foundation works side-by-side with local partners and builds networks to mobilize the skills and energies necessary to implement effective and sustainable actions, at the closest of the population’s needs.

It is particularly involved in the public health issues that have the greatest impact in the countries where it operates, such as antimicrobial resistance, tuberculosis, acute respiratory infections, HIV, and emerging pathogens.

Committed to a global health approach, the Mérieux Foundation goes beyond its expertise in biology to include the main and most impactful issues that influence the well-being of the populations in the countries where it operates.

An approach closely linked to the sustainable development goals

The Mérieux Foundation works independently in the service of global health. By adopting a “One Health” approach, it contributes to achieving several of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Its cross-functional and international activities are focused on:

• SDG #3 “Good health and well-being”
• SDG #4 “Quality education”
• SDG #9 “Industry, innovation and infrastructure”
• SDG #17 “Partnerships for achieving the Goals”

Within each of these goals, several targets directly concern the Foundation’s action, such as target 3.3, which aims to end the tuberculosis epidemic worldwide by 2030.

One mission, four main objectives

• Increasing vulnerable populations’ access to diagnostics by strengthening clinical laboratories in national healthcare systems.
• Enhancing local applied research capabilities collaborative programs development.
• Encouraging knowledge-sharing and public health initiatives working with Les Pensières Center for Global Health.
• Improving conditions for mothers and children taking a global health approach.

One of the main pillars of the Mérieux Foundation lies in its capacity for direct intervention in the field, from the network of 17 laboratories of excellence built at the source of outbreak-prone regions, to the presence of local teams in 15 countries. To carry out its mission, the Mérieux Foundation can rely on its expertise, its great experience in the field and its local partnerships built up over more than 15 years of international development.

Our world has inevitably changed, fundamentally challenging the traditional order and how we operate. New and ongoing armed conflicts are taking place, some of them on our doorsteps. Certain countries are tightening their borders. Climate change is here, and with it comes a loss of biodiversity. The consequences for humans, animals, our ecosystems, and the microorganisms that surround us are clear to see.

The world has always been complex, but it has now become infinitely brutal and unpredictable. The consequences of this are, of course, manifold, affecting the most vulnerable people in particular. Destitution brings with it an increased risk of infection, and people are in desperate need of help.

In this context, the Mérieux Foundation remains committed to helping countries with limited resources, enhancing the responsiveness and agility of our model to adapt to the new order and tackle infectious diseases more effectively.

While strengthening the capacity for diagnosis and research in the field remains a priority, the Foundation also provides broader solutions as part of a global approach to address all factors impacting the health and future of the most fragile populations, particularly mothers and children. Housing, nutrition, education, safety, water, and the environment are some of the fields in which we can make a difference.

And that is exactly what we have chosen to do, in close cooperation with healthcare providers in these countries, who have a better understanding than we do of the local culture and situation in the field. We have been fortunate over the years to work alongside doctors, researchers, biologists, and carers providing an exceptional service in their countries, in sometimes terrible conditions. I’m thinking above all of Haiti, Madagascar, and war-torn countries in the Middle East.

The laboratories we build are handed over to local stakeholders, but we maintain partnerships and links with them that transcend national borders and stand the test of time. We are proud of having built up a network of Rodolphe Mérieux Laboratories that work together and share with us the same long-term vision.

This local presence is crucial in the chaos and uncertainties of our times. It is also key within the Foundation’s permanent teams, more than half of which are now made up of local employees working in the field.

Whatever the situation in the countries in which we operate, we will strive to remain true to our commitments. We want to maintain the ties that unite us together so that we can continue to work with our partners and friends, because over and above political divisions, the fight against infectious diseases must, now more than ever, transcend all borders.

In 2023, facing an increasingly complex international context, teams at the Mérieux Foundation once again showed their unfailing commitment to improving the health of the most vulnerable groups of people.

First of all, I want to say how full of pride and admiration I am for all the Foundation’s employees, especially those working on a daily basis in the field to achieve our mission, in conditions that can sometimes be extremely difficult.

When our projects are deployed in the field, it is always with a view to adapting them to respond to the public health issues currently impacting the countries in which we operate. This year illustrated the Foundation’s expertise and its importance in the field when it comes to dealing with the threat of infection, particularly tuberculosis (a central theme of this 2023 edition) and the serious issue of antimicrobial resistance, as well as the need to reinforce the diagnosis capacities of the reference laboratories at the center of primary health care.

Despite the difficulties we face in our operations, the growing needs we are seeing push us to consolidate what we have achieved at the Mérieux Foundation and continue to develop. Remaining attentive to the needs of the most exposed populations and providing an effective, rapid response alongside local partners continue to be the Foundation’s main objectives. With this in mind, reinforcing our community health actions will be one of our key areas of development over the years to come. To enable us to fulfill these objectives, the Mérieux Foundation will undergo a restructuring in summer 2024.

In our changing, complex, and sometimes unpredictable world, we are profoundly grateful to our partners who, year after year, enable us to deploy our activities, as well as to our Board of Directors and to our President who honor us with their confidence. Thank you for your support and commitment.

This 2023 edition allows us to share with you our new graphic charter, which is better adapted to the Mérieux Foundation’s ambition and to the challenges we face today.