Dr. Albert Friesen Appointed to the Board of Directors of the Canada Foundation for Innovation

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Feb. 15, 2010) - Dr. Elizabeth Cannon, Interim Chair of the Canada Foundation for Innovation, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Albert Friesen to the CFI Board of Directors.

"I would like to welcome Dr. Friesen as our new board director," said Dr. Cannon. "Dr. Friesen brings a spectrum of scientific and business knowledge to the board and I am sure he will be an effective advocate for the CFI."

The CFI is governed by a Board of Directors that makes final decisions on the projects it funds and sets strategic objectives in the context of the funding agreement. Each director is appointed for a three year term. The Board approves annual corporate plans and objectives, and reviews their outcomes.

Albert D. Friesen holds a Ph.D. in protein chemistry from the University of Manitoba. He has been instrumental in the founding and development of several health industry companies, including ABI Biotechnology (now Apotex Fermentation), Canada's first profitable biotech company, and also led the development of Canada's first biotech product, WinRho. Dr. Friesen is a founder of the Industrial Biotechnology Association of Canada (now BIOTECanada). He is currently President and CEO of Medicure Inc., and President of Genesys Venture Inc. (GVI), which provides the expertise for launching and managing emerging health and biotechnology ventures.

Dr. Friesen led the establishment of CentreStone Venture Partners, a $22 million life sciences fund based in Winnipeg, and currently serves on the Premier's Economic Advisory Council, which advises on a range of Manitoba's economic priorities. He also co-chairs the Manitoba Innovation Council, the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Council of Canadian Academies and the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Advisory Board of the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Biographies of all CFI Board Directors is available at http://www.innovation.ca/en/about-the-cfi/governance/board-of-directors.

The CFI is an independent corporation created by the Government of Canada to fund research infrastructure. The CFI's mandate is to strengthen the capacity of Canadian universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions to carry out world-class research and technology development that benefits Canadians.