China has approved 113 innovative drugs since its 14th five-year plan began in 2021, according to data shared at a forum in Shanghai on the development of the domestic medicine industry.
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The number of approvals already marked an increase of nearly three times over the previous five-year plan, and had reached a market scale of 100 billion yuan (US$13.8 billion), the China Pharmaceutical Industry Development Conference heard on Saturday.
As many as 37 innovative drugs and 51 medical devices were approved for sale this year alone, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology data released at the forum showed.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, the data also put China at No 2 in the world in the number of new drugs under development.
“[We will] hasten the industrialisation of important innovative products, carry out work to coordinate the upper and lower streams of the supply chain, and push forward the transformation of pioneering technology such as AI-made medicines,” industry and information technology minister Jin Zhuanglong told the forum.
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The minister also pledged to boost medicine supply and production capacity reserves, with the sector expected to further open up for cooperation with different parties, CCTV reported.
China is upgrading its pharmaceutical industry to make drugs and healthcare more accessible. This is part of its plan to become more self-reliant through “new quality productive forces” driven by technical innovation and a supportive business environment.