Australian High Commissioner Visit PNGIMR Headquaters | PNGIMR getting ready for 40th Anniversary | PNGIMR recieves K35M for research | Professor Siba meets with IRB of UHC MC in USA | Professor Siba meets visits PNGIMR Madang | First EHP HIV/AIDS Stakeholders meeting | 18 graduate as HIV counselors | The Flame of HIV/AIDS-Speech by Gerald Saleu | This quater in Pictures | Grace attends workshop in Melbourne | Mr Tavul attends workshop in Cambodia | PNGIMR celebrates openday with DWU | PNGIMR joins DWU to celebrate open day in picture |Staff graduate from UPNG |Visitors |Staff going Finish |New Staff |Community Service

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PNGIMR Recieves K35M for Research

AusAID and the government of Papua New Guinea have once again committed themselves in assisting research work that is carried out at the Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research, by committing a total of K35 million to the institute.

AusAID will provide core funding support of approximately K20 million for five years from 2007-2011 and the PNG government will contribute approximately K15 million over the same period of time.

Director of PNGIMR Professor Peter Siba witnessed the signing ceremony between the Department of National Planning and the Australian Government’s aid agency, AusAID on the 3rd of April this year.

During the event, Professor Siba said that continued financial support from the governments of PNG and Australia proved their commitment in raising the quality of health service delivery in the country.

He said the money will be used to do research work into the three major killer diseases in Papua New Guinea over the next five years.

These are respiratory diseases such as tuberculosis, mosquito borne diseases, malaria being the obvious and sexually related diseases, HIV/AIDS being the most obvious of these.

Professor Siba pointed out that correct and successful treatment of any kind of disease is only possible when doctors, health extension officers and nurses know what they were dealing with.

“We (PNGIMR) take the responsibility to provide this kind of reliable and accurate information very seriously. And we’re thankful for the support we continue to get from the PNG government and AusAID,” said Professor Siba.

According to Professor Siba, medical research and studies carried out by the institute in the past have seen the production of over one hundred scientific publications, which resulted in the collection of significant evidence-based data.

This has also lead to improved diagnosis and treatment of malaria, sexual health infections and respiratory diseases in PNG.

The support will also enable PNGIMR to strengthening its links with the National Department of health, the National Research Institute and the National AIDS Council Secretariat, leading to increased evidence based decision making for the development of effective health sector programmes.

AusAID’s support for PNGIMR is in line with the PNG governments Media Term Development Strategy (MTDS) in improving service delivery through strengthening policy development.

Professor Siba said with this new support PNGIMR will expand its activities and by expanding their activities they will be helping to improve the health of Papua New Guineans.

He said the institute’s research had been focused on the key health issues in the country and in line with the national health plan and policies.

In the past years AusAID helped put the institute on a good footing to be able to attract other sources of funding, when it had given K18 million to the institute.

Some of PNGIMR’s past activities included research programs in respiratory diseases, malaria, malnutrition, enteric diseases, sexually transmitted infections and women’s health.