In 2005, Fondation Mérieux established the Charles Mérieux Centre of Infectiology in Bamako, with the aim of fighting against infectious diseases in Mali.
In partnership with the government of Mali and the Fondation Christophe et Rodolphe Mérieux, Fondation Mérieux has enabled the local scientific and medical community to benefit from a quality tool in biological diagnostics.
The centre consists of a medical analysis laboratory, the Rodolphe Mérieux Laboratory, where daily examinations in clinical biology and bacteriology (mycobacteria), haematology, serology (toxoplasmosis, HIV), parasitology (malaria), and biochemistry and molecular biology (HIV viral load, molecular diagnosis of tuberculosis) are performed.
The centre is also equipped with several class rooms and laboratories where training is held for biologists and biotechnologists working in the laboratories.
The Centre participates in the West African Laboratory Network's (RESAOLAB) activities, which are financed by AFD and Fondation Mérieux and involve three countries: Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal.
Since 2011, the Charles Mérieux Centre bears the name Centre d'Infectiologie Charles Mérieux (CICM) under the direction of Professor Souleymane Diallo.