Developing Norms for the Provision of Biological Laboratories in Low-Resource Contexts

On June 27-28, 2018, the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (the National Academies) convened an international workshop in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on developing norms for the provision of laboratories in low-resource contexts. The U.S. Department of State's Biosecurity Engagement Program requested that the National Academies organize this workshop to engage an international group of organizations that provide funding for construction, upgrades, and maintenance of biological laboratories in countries without the means to build such labs themselves. Twenty-one people from 19 organizations participated. The intent was to advance the conversation about the identification and application of guiding principles and common norms for use by these organizations in their grants, partnerships, and aid. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.Table of ContentsFront Matter1 INTRODUCTION2 THE NEED FOR CONTAINMENT LABORATORIES3 THE DONOR POPULATION AND ITS GOALS IN PROVIDING BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY CAPACITY FOR LOW-RESOURCE SETTINGS4 MOLECULAR DIAGNOSTICS: AN ALTERNATIVE TO HIGH CONTAINMENT?5 KEY FACTORS FOR BUILDING AND SUSTAINABLY OPERATING HIGH-CONTAINMENT LABS IN LOW-RESOURCE CONTEXTS: AN OVERVIEW6 POTENTIAL NORMS FOR FUNDERS OF BIOLOGICAL LABORATORIES IN LOW-RESOURCE COUNTRIESREFERENCESAPPENDIX A: STATEMENT OF TASKAPPENDIX B: WORKSHOP AGENDAAPPENDIX C: WORKSHOP PARTICIPANTS AND CONTRIBUTORSAPPENDIX D: WORLD BANK 2017 LIST OF LOW AND LOWER-MIDDLE INCOME ECONOMIESAPPENDIX E: LIST OF LABS IDENTIFIED IN LOW-RESOURCE COUNTRIES