In terms of the production of Class I new drugs that best represent the innovation level, Shanghai accounts for a quarter of the total in China. In the first half of this year, Shanghai’s biopharma industry exceeded RMB350 billion, with a growth rate of over 20%. These hard-core data show the huge energy and vitality of Shanghai’s biopharma industry.

Biopharma is one of the three leading pillar industries in Shanghai. The International Biopharma Industry Week Shanghai 2021 (IBIWS) that kicked off today will show you the highlights and achievements of “Shanghai Plan” for biopharma industry.

Confidence

Benchmark the world’s top conferences

The first IBIWS that kicked off today was a grand event attended by hundreds of top scientists and investors and thousands of heads of pharmaceutical enterprises. Besides, it attracted international giants to held high-end forums for the first time in Shanghai. For example, J.P. Morgan has held the 39th Annual Healthcare Conference in San Francisco, America, which can be seen as a “weathervane” for the development of the global biopharma industry. This time, it will hold Shanghai Forum of the Annual Healthcare Conference for the first time in China during IBIWS.

“When I attended biopharma conferences or forums held in Europe and America, an idea crossed my mind that I hoped to discuss various hot topics in the biopharma industry with these business leaders and investors in China. Unexpectedly, this soon became a reality.” Lv Xiangyang, Founder of the biopharma start-up Laekna Therapeutics, said that in terms of the current arrangements and plans for the first IBIWS, it can match many world-class bioindustry forums with intense activities and high specifications. “I believe that with the COVID-19 pandemic further curbed, we continue to hold and develop these activities every year, and IBIWS will quickly become a worldwide top event in the health industry, providing a bridge for the local biopharma industry to connect with the world and achieve common prosperity.” He said that what he most expected was to seek opportunities in business, financing cooperation and academic exchanges during IBIWS. In addition, IBIWS provides a golden opportunity and an excellent platform for start-ups to show their strength.

Shanghai has confidence in holding the significant event IBIWS in such a time window. Currently, 18 of the 20 largest pharmaceutical enterprises and 17 of the top 20 medical device enterprises worldwide have established regional headquarters, R&D centers, offices or manufacturing bases in Shanghai.

“Benchmarking the world’s top biopharma conferences, we hope to bring together the best brains in global life sciences and medical sciences to boost the development of Shanghai’s biopharma industry. So it must be a fully open and highly international conference.” Liu Ping, Deputy Director of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, said that the IBIWS will be held on a regular basis every year in the future to build an international biopharma ecosystem for various parties including domestic investment institutions, biotechnology and pharmaceutical enterprises, scientific research institutions and industry organizations. It will help Chinese enterprises show themselves on the international stage, and promote China to meet international standards in new drug production, continuously enhancing China’s independent innovation capabilities in biopharma.

Secret

Enhance the capability of original innovation

Among the 23 Class I innovative drugs approved by National Medical Products Administration this year, six came from Shanghai, accounting for more than 1/4; among the innovative medical devices, nine products from Shanghai entered special channels for national approval, accounting for about 1/5 nationwide.

“Shanghai has always given top priority to improving the capability of original innovation in the process of promoting the high-quality development of the biopharma industry, and made great efforts in research on basic and cutting-edge technologies, clinical translation capabilities, and construction of innovation platform and carriers.” This is how Zhu Qigao, Deputy Director of Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, explains the “secret” of the hard-core data.

The Implementation Opinions on Promoting the High-quality Development of Biopharma Industry in Shanghai released this year includes the complete-industrial-train policies including R&D, clinical drugs, manufacturing and application.

Wu Jincheng, Director of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, said that Shanghai has given strong backing to biopharma industry in funding research and development, providing carriers such as factory buildings, as well as streamlining and optimizing service approvals. A series of policies such as facilitating the import of special items for biopharma research and development in Pudong New Area and implementing biopharma access negative list system in Lin-gang New Area are being piloted in Shanghai.

“For top talent who wants to make a difference in Zhangjiang, they can settle down with only an idea and a computer, and obtain the rest resources they need easily here.” said Chen Yaoshui, Deputy Director of the Zhangjiang High-tech Park Management Committee. Zhangjiang Pharma Valley is not only a gathering place of large pharmaceutical enterprises, but also a paradise for entrepreneurs. Among the 15 biopharma companies listed on the STAR Market so far, six came from the incubators and shared labs in Zhangjiang, accounting for 40%.

According to the plan, by 2025, Shanghai’s biopharma industry will reach RMB1.2 trillion. The city has basically developed into an original technological innovation base for biopharma industry with international influence, a core area leading the coordinated development of biopharma industry in the Yangtze River Delta, a strategic pacesetter driving the development of national biopharma industry, and a home to world-class biopharma clusters.

 (Author: Ye Wei, Xinmin Evening News)