Quebec Consortium for Drug Discovery (CQDM) receives $9 million aid

This support for the CQDM is in line with Quebec Research and Innovation Strategy. The CQDM offices are located at 2 Place du Commerce in L'Île-des-Sœurs; it is the first organisation of its kind in Canada. Bringing together eminent scientists from the industrial, academic, hospital and government sectors, the CQDM promotes synergy between university research and industrial research. This public-private partnership aims to create better tools that can be used to discover safer and more effective drugs.

The financial aid received by CQDM for the period 2009-2012 totals $9 million, of which $3 million is for 2009-2010. Its total budget for the period is $32.5 million. Three pharmaceutical companies - Merck-Frosst, Pfizer and Astra-Zeneca - will invest $1 million each year in the Consortium. The Fonds de recherche en santé du Québec (FRSQ) and the Canadian Network of Centres of Excellence will also contribute to the CQDM. “The bio-pharmaceutical sector is one of the most active in the fields of research and development. For Quebec, it is an important sector of the economy with more than 145 companies and almost 21,000 direct jobs. Thanks to this investment, the Quebec government can help finance innovative and vital research to achieve progress in life science technologies for Quebec”, Minister Clément Gignac pointed out.

The alliance between private companies and research centres constitutes the cornerstone of the Quebec Research and Innovation Strategy (Stratégie québécoise de la recherche et de l'innovation - SQRI). To accomplish this, the SQRI promotes the development of sector groups in industrial research, particularly in the domain of drugs and medication. “Through this initiative, our government confirms the importance of the bio-pharmaceutical sector in Quebec. The CQDM was created to fulfill the needs of the industrial sector where research is also active. We are proud to be able to contribute to the advancement of this collectivity because it does as much for research and for Quebec’s development”, Mr. Henri-François Gautrin added. “The government’s support gives a larger scope to research programs by making it possible for the CQDM to finance more projects. We will allow more companies to satisfy their needs in terms of innovation”, concluded Mr. Max Felhmman, president of the Quebec Consortium for Drug Discovery.