A ceremony was held in the central province of Khanh Hoa in Mar. 1 to commemorate the 67 th death anniversary of Alexandre Yersin, a French scientist, who spent almost 50 years of his life working in the province.

Alexandre Yersin was a physician and bacteriologist. Along with Shibasaburo Kitasato he is remembered as the co-discoverer of the bacillus responsible for the bubonic plague or pest, which was later re-named in his honour (Yersinia pestis).

Yersin was the founder of the Nha Trang Pasteur Institute and the veterinary sector of Vietnam and was one of the founders of the first medical school in Vietnam and Indochina . He was also the person who introduced rubber trees and Cinchona ledgeriana, a medicinal tree, to Vietnam .

Khanh Hoa has set up a Yersin Fans Association and named a local junior high school and a laboratory after him in his memory.

The association has almost 1,000 members after 16 years of operation. They engage in humanitarian activities to help the poor and disadvantaged people in mountainous and isolated areas./.