MONROVIA – The National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) and the Ministry of Defense (MoD), alongside the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL), have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to bolster collaboration in biomedical research, scientific training, and public health emergency preparedness and response.
Representing NPHIL, Director General Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Defense for the long-standing cooperation that dates back to the former Liberia Institute for Biomedical Research (LIBR), spanning the Ebola and COVID-19 outbreaks, and now culminating in an official agreement.
“The MOU is a formal step to enhance inter-agency collaboration for coordinated public health delivery, national emergency preparedness and response, expanded diagnostic and laboratory support for disease surveillance, and strengthened biosecurity,” Dr. Nyan said.
The agreement also aims to promote biomedical and operational research in key public health areas, support joint training initiatives, and foster workforce development in health security.
During the signing ceremony, Defense Minister Brigadier General Geraldine Janet George (RTD) commended NPHIL for initiating the agreement and reaffirmed the MoD’s commitment to effective collaboration for national development.
Highlighting the significance of the MOU, Dr. Nyan, a former Research Scientist with the U.S. Navy Medical Research Center at Walter Reed, said, “This is not just an agreement—it is a critical step toward enhancing public health and strengthening national security against potential biothreats.”
Dr. Nyan also pledged that NPHIL, through its National Reference Laboratory, will continue to engage in biomedical research collaboration with the AFL and ensure capacity building at the newly constructed Diagnostic Laboratory at the 14-Military Hospital in Margibi County.
The Ministry of Defense, together with the AFL, has been an active participant in the Mpox Incidence Management System and has provided strategic guidance through Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Kowo.
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