Ceremony marks 159th birth anniversary of French scientist

Delegates offer flowers at Alexandre Yersin's last resting place. (Photo: baokhanhhoa.vn)

Khanh Hoa (VNA) – A ceremony was held in the central province of Khanh Hoa on September 22 to mark the 159th birth anniversary of Alexandre Yersin, a French scientist who spent almost 50 years of his life working in the province.

The event also aimed to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Yersin Fans Association (November 11, 1992-November 11, 2022).

Born in Switzerland, Yersin (September 22, 1863 – March 1, 1943) studied medicine at prestigious institutes in the country, Germany and France. He came to Vietnam in 1891 and lived in Nha Trang city for more than half a century. The scientist was most remembered as the co-discoverer of the bacillus responsible for the bubonic plague in 1894.

He discovered Liang Biang Plateau, the site of Da Lat city, in 1893 and founded the Nha Trang Pasteur Institute in 1895. Yersin was also the person who introduced rubber tree and Cinchona ledgeriana, a medicinal tree, to Vietnam.

He was also the founder of the Indochina Medicine School, which later became the Hanoi Medical University and the Hanoi University of Pharmacy.

In addition to collaborating with individuals and organisations to popularise the life and careers of the French scientist, the Yersin Fans Association also engages in human activities to help poor and disadvantaged people.

Yersin Fans Association awards scholarships to poor students with outstanding academic performance. (Photo: VNA)

At the ceremony, the provincial People’s Committee presented a certificate of merit to the association for its contributions over the past 30 years.

Scholarships were also awarded to poor students with outstanding academic performance on the occasion./.