Biotech 'takeoff package' launched

Chang announced the immediate launch of the package at the weekly Executive Yuan meeting. He said that biotech is among six sectors targeted by the government to become star industries, and Taiwan must be part of the global efforts to develop the industry.

To the end, the government will set up a NT$60 billion biotechnology venture capital fund in cooperation with the private sector. In the initial stage, the fund will raise NT$10 billion to support the biotech takeoff plan, with 40 percent to be contributed by the National Development Fund under the Executive Yuan, and 60 percent from the private sector.

The investment capital will then be gradually increased to ward off risks.

Private partners of the fund will take charge of establishing an investment evaluation team for selecting investment targets, both in Taiwan and abroad, in order to introduce cutting-edge technologies or obtain the dominance of outstanding biotech firms.

Under the package, Chang said, a national biotech incubation center, dubbed Supra Incubator Center (SIC), will be set up in the Chubei or Nankang bio-medicine park to help commercialize domestic or foreign biotechnologies. The SIC will

provide assistance to biotech firms invested in by the biotech venture capital fund in terms of operating funds, legal affairs, technology, intellectual property protection and operations.

In addition, the government is also planning to open a biotechnology park in the Chupei area in northern Taiwan to help boost the development of related businesses there, aiming to double the annual output value of the biotech sector to NT$300 billion within four years.

The project also envisions the reform of the Development Center for Biotechnology into a pre-clinical center, mainly for carrying out the toxic test of new medicines on animals before their clinical test. The center is already furnished with an international-standard toxic laboratory, whose workforce will be expanded to over 1,000, from 400 now, under the project.

The government will also set up a food and drug administration similar to the United States', so as to bring Taiwan's regulations on pharmaceutical products up to international standards, according to Chang.

In the medical sector, the government will initially use the nation's strong research infrastructure to create lucrative business opportunities by tapping into Taiwan's talent pool and research resources in the areas of pharmaceutics and medical equipment, Chang said.

The scale of the world medical equipment and pharmaceutics markets reached around US$712 billion and US$194 billion, respectively, in 2007, and Asia is set to become the global hub of the two industries, Chang added.

The government has been assessing the possibility of forging business alliances with Singapore and Australia in these fields in a bid to enhance Taiwan's business cooperation with the international community, he noted.

The biotech takeoff package has been formulated in response to the instruction of President Ma Ying-jeou in late February for the Cabinet to come up with the development strategies for six new star industries, namely biotech, tourism and travel, medical care, green energy, cultural innovation, and refined agriculture.

Ma recently reiterated at the opening of a technological industrial park in Taichung County, central Taiwan that the government will fully support these sectors as a means of pushing Taiwan to gain an advantage in the global industrial realignment that will occur when the worldwide economic crisis comes to an end.

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