Saudi Arabian Princess visits Noguchi Memorial Institute

Accra, Nov. 8, GNA - Princess Ameerah Al-Taweel, wife of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal has paid a visit to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in Accra on Monday.

The visit forms part of the royal couple two-day official visit to Ghana.

Professor Alexandra Nyarko, Director of the Institute, said the mandate of the academic facility is to conduct research into diseases of public health importance, train post-graduate students in biomedical sciences and support public health activities of the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service.

“Over the years, it has held its research into various infectious and non-infectious diseases, malnutrition, as well as environmental issues,” he added.

Prof Nyarko noted that the Institute has provided the needed evidence for policy formulation towards the control of various diseases including HIV and AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and buruli ulcer.

He said the World Health Organisation has also adopted some of the policy outcomes of the Institute for worldwide application, which includes change in the timing of measles vaccination from nine months to six months and administration of poliomyelitis vaccine at delivery instead of six weeks after birth.

The Director said the institute’s work on drug sensitivity studies revealed that malaria parasites are no longer sensitive to chloroquine; therefore it necessitated the change in malaria treatment policy for the country.

He said in 2003 the institute received $ 600,000 from Prince Al-Waleed to address infrastructure challenges of the Organisation, adding that now the Institute has a clinical facility to conduct clinical trials, a clinical laboratory and a diagnosis services centre for the University of Ghana Hospital

Prof Nyarko disclosed that the institute has named one of the facilities after the Prince called Al-Waleed Research Facility, which also serves as accommodation for the Organisation’s Data/Bioinformatics Centre.

Princess Ameerah Al-Taweel, commended the Institute for its good work in research activities, saying that it is the hope of the academic facility that studies conducted would continue to improve on the wellbeing of the people.

Mrs Juliana Azuma-Mensah, Minister of Women and Children Affairs, expressed gratitude to the Al-Waleed Foundation for making it possible for the Institute to have an additional infrastructure facility.

She said the completion of a school building at Nima and a donation to the Asantehene Educational Trust Fund were evidence of the support from the foundation to the promotion of the well being not only of children but also the development of the educational and health sector of the country.