2023-06-11 03:01:00
Biospectator Boston (USA) = Reporter Seo Yoon-seok
[BIO USA 2023] Songdo, Incheon exemplary case.. Need for sustainable support such as R&D, start-up, investment, institutional support, etc.. “Association, K-space establishment.. Reinforcing open innovation”
▲ Roh Yeon-hong, President of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Association
Roh Yeon-hong, head of the Korea Pharmaceutical Bio Association, emphasized on the 8th (local period) that “Korean clusters must provide customized support for the areas lacking in existing clusters.”
At a press conference held following attending ‘BioUSA 2023’ held in Boston, the United States, Chairman Roh said, “Because a cluster is efficient when all excellent universities, excellent hospitals, and research institutes are integrated, it is necessary to designate a certain area from the beginning with a blank slate. I don’t think it’s wise to proceed with that,” he said.
The US Boston cluster, which is evaluated as the world’s best bio cluster, has excellent universities such as MIT and Harvard, more than 1,000 bio companies including Pfizer and Moderna, large hospitals such as Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, and venture capital. (VC), excellent research personnel and capital were intensively gathered to establish a self-sustaining ecosystem.
He said, “It is important for the government to provide priming water for cluster construction, but it is unreasonable for the government to lead from the beginning to the end and it is difficult to have self-sufficiency.” We are discussing in depth whether we can make it into a self-sustaining cluster.”
In particular, he cited Songdo, Incheon as an example of an exemplary cluster. Chairman Noh said, “Songdo has become almost the largest city in the world in terms of CDMO for biopharmaceuticals, and although there was support from the central and local governments, Yonsei University is also building a hospital, there are universities such as Inha University and Gachon University, and biotechs are entering the ecosystem. It has been formed,” he said. “Now I think we need to look at what is needed and supplement it.”
According to the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharmaceutical Association, clusters in Korea are differentiated by regional characteristics. Pangyo’s strength lies in industrial convergence, while Daejeon’s is centered on research complexes and Wonju’s growth is centered on a specific industry of medical devices. It is explained that it is necessary to develop differentiated development through efforts suitable for the characteristics of each cluster, and to seek sustainable support measures for each cluster in R&D, commercialization, start-up, and investment.
Chairman Noh said, “Clusters should take an international approach, not a national approach.” Innovation is needed and I think we need to strengthen it.”
He emphasized that institutional support for cluster establishment is also important. Chairman Roh said, “Recently, as biotechnology is included in the national high-tech strategic industry, tax support is expected to be provided.” If designated as a national high-tech strategic industry, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will receive tax credits of 40-50% and large companies 30-40% of their R&D expenses.
Regarding VC investment, which is one of the important factors in building a biocluster, Chairman Noh said, “There are many VCs who see this as an opportunity where investment sentiment is dead. “The association also discloses the pipelines of companies on the Internet, and is upgrading the platform that connects investors who want to invest in new technologies or companies who want to introduce pipelines.” He added, “We plan to select 1-2 companies a month and conduct online IR. Through this process, we will support the flow of funds in the market even though it is a difficult environment.”
The platform built by the Pharmaceutical Bio Association is K-Space (Korea Superior Pharma-pipeline Accelerating Collaboration Evolution Platform). This platform was established in December of last year for the purpose of creating a new drug development ecosystem through the vitalization of open innovation. As of June this year, more than 2,000 pipelines of companies and universities have been registered.
Chairman Noh said, “Compared to 10 years ago, I realize that the international status of the domestic biopharmaceutical industry has changed a lot, and I think that the domestic biopharmaceutical industry has begun to take off.” Compared to four years ago, the number of domestic pipelines increased by regarding three times to 1,833. Research on new modalities is being actively conducted centering on biotechs, and I think this has been shown to be the second most enthusiastic participation in BioUSA following the United States,” he said.
He said, “The biopharmaceutical industry is a field that is highly dependent on government policies, and in order for the biopharmaceutical business to grow, appropriate policies and voluntary efforts from the industry are required.” I will go,” he said.
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