As the Covid-19 pandemic impacts economies and societies, the Scientific Research Organisation of Samoa maintains its commitment to strengthening and enhancing its contributions to Samoa’s response with support from the Food and Agriculture Organisation
FAO Sub regional Coordinator for the Pacific Islands, Xiangjun Yao, attended the handover ceremony representing Liang Qu, the Director of Joint IAEA/FAO office in Vienna and FAO. “FAO recognizes that research for development is fundamental to boast food security which and agriculture development is an important FAO mandate.”
Yao said. “This equipment will greatly help in the detection of COVID-19 as well as zoonotic after COVID, detection, of animal diseases like Africans Swine fever (ASF), a highly contagious viral disease in domestic pigs and wild boar which currently has no effective treatment.
Lopao’o Natanielu Mu’a, Caretaker Minister for the Scientific Research Organisation of Samoa, received the assistance that was handed over by Xiangjun Yao.
The Government of Samoa submitted a request under the interregional technical cooperation project on ‘Strengthening Capabilities of Member States in Building, Strengthening and Restoring Capacities and Services in Case of Outbreaks, Emergencies and Disasters’, the financial aid has made possible, the procurement of several state-of-the-art bio-molecular diagnostic and research equipment as well as much needed laboratory consumables.
The instruments were procured by IAEA from Eurofins Genomics (Austria), Biozym Scientific (Germany), ESCO MICRO Pte Ltd (Singapore) and Fleischhacker GmbH & Co. (Germany). The further technical support for detection of SARS-CoV-2 and control of zoonotic disease in the future will be provided by the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture under the coordination of FAO Subregional Office for the Pacific Islands in Apia (SAP).
The Government of Samoa acknowledged IAEA, FAO and major donors of IAEA Member States the Government of the USA for their generous support and commitment in strengthening the country’s response to COVID-19 through SROS.
Photo Supplied Caption: FAO Sub regional Coordinator for the Pacific Islands, Xiangjun Yao presenting the donations to SROS Caretaker Minister Lopao’o Natanielu Mua.