Tianjin Unveils Measures to Boost Biotech Industry Development

China's Tianjin Unveils 25 Measures to Boost Biotech Industry Development

Tianjin, Feb 13 (Xinhua) - The Tianjin government has unveiled a set of measures aimed at further fostering the development of its biotech industry, which includes 25 supportive policies.

The measures are designed to leverage Tianjin's innovative advantages in the biotech sector and promote the growth of the industry through innovation-driven development.

Tianjin Municipal Science and Technology Commission Director Jiu Yubing said that the measures focus on six key areas, including strengthening innovation capacity building, promoting high-level clinical research, speeding up the registration and approval process for innovative drugs and devices, encouraging the application of innovative drugs and devices in clinical settings, driving the upgrade of industry capabilities through innovation, and optimizing the industrial development ecosystem.

Jiu Yubing noted that the measures are a first-time comprehensive policy package tailored to the biotech industry, featuring multiple innovative policies. For instance, two directories will be established for the first time. The first directory focuses on key research and development projects, under which main departments will provide guidance services throughout the entire process of evaluation, approval, registration, and clinical testing, aiming to accelerate product commercialization.

The second directory is for guiding the application of approved products, which will receive support in areas such as insurance coverage after being listed on the market.

In addition, Tianjin plans to pilot national reforms in drug registration evaluation, reducing the review period from 120 days to 60 days. The city will also streamline the approval process for innovative medical devices that have leading technological advantages and significant clinical benefits, with a goal of compressing the evaluation period to an average of 40 working days.

Tianjin will also make full use of its collective strength in medical device testing and detection, expanding the scope of product acceptance and reducing the testing period to an average of 60 working days.

Jiu Yubing noted that Tianjin has a rich concentration of biotech innovation resources, with 31 national-level innovation platforms. In the industry sector, the city's biotech above-scale industrial enterprises achieved production value exceeding 900 billion yuan in 2024, up 6.96 percent year-on-year, with 188 projects under construction and planned investment exceeding 535 billion yuan, up 9.15 percent year-on-year.

The measures are expected to further drive the growth of Tianjin's biotech industry, which has seen significant progress in recent years.