Spanish Industry invests in national economy
This article was originally published in Scrip
Over the next three years the Spanish pharmaceutical industry will invest €180 million in public research projects as part of its pledge to bolster the national economy, says Farmaindustria, Spain's pharmaceutical industry association.
Earlier this year the industry promised to help Spain's floundering economy by increasing its investments to €3.6 billion between 2009 and 2011. The funds are to be largely directed to R&D, the workforce and internationalisation (scripnews.com, April 6th, 2009).
The €180 million to be directed to public research projects will be spread among Spain's 17 autonomous regions. The projects will mainly be aimed at improving local capacity for translational, clinical and biomedical research.
One objective is to create a positive environment for stimulating clinical trials. Projects that improve the visibility of clinical research, and trial recruitment and administration will be key. Investments are also to be made in clinical research in primary care settings.
Establishing biobanks is another objective. These will house a variety of tissues useful for identifying the environmental and genetic factors that lead to disease. The tissue is also to be used for developing more precise diagnostic tools, identifying new therapeutic targets and accelerating R&D.
A third priority will be to transform hospitals into accredited healthcare research institutes that would support research groups and co-operation with pharmaceutical companies and life sciences.