On the afternoon of March 25, Yin Li, Secretary of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee, held separate meetings with Vas Narasimhan, CEO of Novartis; Albert Bourla, Chairman and CEO of Pfizer; and Rainer M. Blair, President and CEO of Danaher Corporation.
Yin gave an overview of the economic and social development in Beijing, as well as the health status of its residents. He emphasized the importance that the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee and the municipal government attach to people’s health, and their commitment to deliver higher-quality medical services to all citizens by promoting the healthcare industry and leveraging the city’s abundant sci-tech resources and talent. Beijing has a solid foundation and a well-established system in the medical and healthcare industry, and has made significant advancements in key areas such as cell, genes, nucleic acid drugs, and novel antibodies. These efforts have led to world-class varieties through innovation at the source in fields like antibody drugs and immunotherapy drugs. With abundant and dynamic technological innovation resources and a stable R&D intensity of over 6% of GDP, Beijing has witnessed huge growth in digital healthcare. Moreover, various support policies, including the opening-up policies like the "two zones", can be found across the R&D, production, and application of innovative drugs. To foster a business environment that is market-oriented, law-based, convenient, and up to international standards, Beijing has established a comprehensive system to protect intellectual property rights, featuring a specialized intellectual property court and institutions for drug patent linkage protection and intellectual property insurance.
Yin remarked that in recent years Beijing has prioritized the development of the medical and healthcare industry, especially innovative drugs, and is willing to share opportunities and achieve mutual development with domestic and foreign pharmaceutical companies through deepening cooperation. It is hoped that Novartis will expand its presence and increase investment in new production lines to produce more innovative drugs in Beijing; enhance R&D and innovation capabilities in the city by strengthening cooperation with local research institutes and medical institutions; and actively deepen cooperation in digital healthcare to deliver more efficient and convenient pharmaceutical services. Yin also expressed his hope for Pfizer to strengthen cooperation with relevant institutions in R&D and clinical trials, and introduce more innovative products to tap into China's huge market. In addition, Pfizer should leverage its leading role in the industry to deepen cooperation with startups in Beijing and join hands with them to address public health challenges by utilizing its technological advantages. Danaher Corporation is encouraged to expedite the establishment and operation of its innovation center and headquarters in northern China, leveraging Beijing's advantages in sci-tech talent and the resource allocation capabilities within the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region to enhance R&D and production capabilities for scientific instruments and equipment in the city. It is hoped that Danaher Corporation can assist local enterprises to explore international markets and further enhance digital products and services.
Vas Narasimhan emphasized the importance of the Chinese market to Novartis, saying that the company will continue to expand the production capacity of its Changping factory, introduce more innovative drugs, and strengthen R&D cooperation with relevant institutions in Beijing, thereby making greater contributions to the continuous advancement of digital healthcare and the whole medical and healthcare sector in Beijing. Albert Bourla stated that China’s huge medical and healthcare market and Beijing’s strong innovation capabilities and excellent business environment provide tremendous opportunities for pharmaceutical companies. Pfizer is willing to deepen cooperation with Beijing in such areas as innovative R&D and address public health challenges. Rainer M. Blair highly praised Beijing's first-class innovation ecosystem, expressing Danaher Corporation’s willingness to enhance the R&D and production capabilities in Beijing, expand its presence in the city and surrounding areas, and collaborate with Beijing's sci-tech enterprises and relevant research institutions to explore more fields for innovation cooperation.
Municipal leaders Xia Linmao and Jin Wei attended the meetings.
(Written by Fan Junsheng)
