Murdoch Children's Research Institute secures $5M grant to prevent childhood disease

The grant was announced at MCRI's 40th anniversary gala in Melbourne on Saturday night.

"My government is proud to partner with MCRI, so our world-leading researchers have the best opportunities to support healthier childhoods for Australians now and into the future."

The goal is for the fund to raise between $50 million and $100 million in its first year and to reach $200 million within five years.

The fund is designed to back researchers' immediate priorities while safeguarding long-term capital for future medical breakthroughs in children's health.

Co-founded in 1986 by philanthropist and child health advocate Dame Elisabeth Murdoch and pediatrician and genetics pioneer Professor David Danks, MCRI comprises 1,800 scientists, researchers and clinicians.

"Dame Elisabeth's leadership, along with her values, shaped both the direction and the ethos of the Institute we were to become - for all children to live a healthy and fulfilled life," said Sarah Murdoch, who is Dame Elisabeth Murdoch's granddaughter-in-law and MCRI's global ambassador and board co-chair. 

"With the generosity of a remarkable group of founding donors alongside the Murdoch family - Sir Jack Brockhoff, the Miller family, and The Scobie and Claire Mackinnon Trust - the foundations were laid for an Institute designed to bring our brightest minds, to serve all children, not only in that moment, but for generations to come," Ms. Murdoch added.

"Because behind every breakthrough is a child - a family desperate for answers. A future changed because of the commitment by so many."

MCRI Director Kathryn North expressed appreciation at the gala to the prime minister for the $5 million grant.

"From the beginning, MCRI has been guided by a simple but powerful purpose: to give all children the opportunity to live a healthy and fulfilled life," North said.

"It reflects a belief that good health is the foundation for a full life, and that opportunity should never be limited by circumstance."

"These are big problems that will require significant and ongoing support," she said. "Through our work globally, we are helping communities raise their expectations to both deliver and receive the sort of healthcare we take for granted."