LYON, France - INTERPOL has launched a comprehensive two year programme to counter the threat of bio-terrorism, following the award of a grant of nearly one million dollars from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

The INTERPOL programme will raise awareness of the bio-terrorism threat among members of the international law enforcement community, develop police training programmes and help strengthen enforcement of existing legislation.

Part of the $943,000 grant from the Sloan Foundation will be used to organise an international conference in 2005 for senior law enforcement officials and experts from a wide range of specialised areas. The conference will emphasise the need for police to treat the risk of bio-terrorism as a global threat. Thereafter, regional training workshops will be held for police in Africa, the Americas and Asia.

INTERPOL will also produce training materials and provide technical assistance and support for trained law enforcement officers. The organization will develop a strategic plan for sustaining the programme beyond the term of the grant.

In addition, INTERPOL will begin to identify gaps in existing national legislation by surveying laws concerning bio-terrorism.

'There is simply not enough knowledge of what countries' police forces can and should do to prevent terrorists from acquiring or making biological weapons,' INTERPOL Secretary General Ronald K. Noble said. 'Thanks to the strong support of the Sloan Foundation, INTERPOL will be able to provide its member countries with essential information and support in order to reduce the threat of bio-terrorism.

'We have to accept that once a bio-terrorist attack has been committed, the options presented to law enforcement agencies are very limited. The consequences of such an attack can be so devastating that we have no choice but to focus the efforts of police on risk control and prevention.'

Paula J. Olsiewski, the Sloan Foundation's Program Director, said: 'Bio-terrorism is a very difficult problem. We believe INTERPOL and Secretary General Noble are well situated to help law enforcement better understand and address this global threat.'

INTERPOL is the world's largest international police organization with 181 member countries. It was established in 1923 to help law enforcement officers from around the world - with different languages, cultures and national laws - to work together to combat crime.

The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, www.sloan.org, is a philanthropic nonprofit institution based in New York. In 2000, the Foundation funded its first project aimed at reducing the threat of bio-terrorism and since then has awarded more than $20 million in grants for this purpose.

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