Annual Report 2002

Chairman's Report

The year 2002 saw a lot of activity both in research and in policy developments.

The report of the Director, Professor Graham Le Gros, outlines in detail what was a successful year obtaining grants, donations, equipment and laboratory resources, so as to maintain and expand our scientific research programmes. In my report, I will focus on our recently established charitable company, MalCorp Biodiscoveries Ltd, discuss the review of the Institute's strategic plan and outline our financial status.

MalCorp Biodiscoveries Ltd was established this year to hold our Intellectual Property and to act as a vehicle to manage our interests in joint ventures and to enter commercial arrangements. Its mission is to facilitate translation of the benefits of the Institute's discoveries from the laboratory bench to the patient's bedside, and to ensure that any financial gains from commercialisation of the Institute's discoveries return to the Institute to foster its research. An early use of the company occurred with the formalising of our joint venture with our partners Celentis Ltd (AgResearch) and Otago Innovation Ltd (University of Otago) to pursue mutual interests in developing therapies for Asthma. Following on the heels of that development was the initiation of a new joint programme with the National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research and the New Zealand Institute for Crop & Food Research targeted at discovering new anti-inflammatory drugs from New Zealand's unique biota.

These strategic relationships underscored the importance of a formal review of the Institute's Strategic Plan lead by the General Manager, Stephen Watson. This was a comprehensive undertaking, with major inputs by the staff, management team and Trustees. The final plan was reviewed by the Trustees in December and will be adopted formally at the first meeting in 2003. The plan continues to advocate independence, maintaining the base in Wellington and continuing our core research themes. We can, with confidence, build our relationships with strategic partners and contribute value to our respective objectives.

A key aspect of the strategic planning effort was to translate the long term vision and plans into specific operational actions and objectives for the next year. The coming year will provide challenges as we seek to implement this plan and build on its core identified issues.

Government policies in the research, educational and health areas remain critical as to how we provide a useful continuing contribution to our community. We will remain aware, but vulnerable, to changes and therefore will seek to build on the relationships that enhance those contributions.

The Institute's Balance Sheet, whilst giving some security in the medium term to meet the demands made by our researchers, does not adequately provide for the longer term research requirements. This is a key concern of Trustees, who would like to see the Institute establish a secure location. The increasing tempo of research activity is reflected in the Revenue Statement. In this year's Annual Report we have condensed our financial reporting in the interest of providing other information. Full audited accounts are available upon request.

During the year we saw a high level of activity by our Friends groups in Auckland, Hawkes Bay, Wellington and Queenstown. We will seek to look at establishing groups in Tauranga, Nelson and wherever supporters are willing to give us some of their time to promote the work of the Institute.

As Chairman, I get to see how hard so many people work to allow New Zealand to have such a wonderful asset as the Institute, serious research aimed at delivering real solutions to our health issues whilst developing new researchers and sharing our knowledge. To you all as Trustees, Staff, Friends and our great number of Donors, thank you

Director's Report

 

Scientific Reports can be found in the Research section of this website

 

Financial Account

Grants to the Institute