Bio Association to Operate "Largest Ever Korean Pavilion" at BioUSA

The Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization (Korea Bio) announced on the 28th that it will jointly operate the Korean Pavilion with KOTRA on the largest scale ever at the 2024 BIO International Convention (BIO USA), held over four days from the 3rd to the 6th of next month (local time) in San Diego, California, USA.

A view of the Korea Pavilion at BioUSA 2023 held in Boston, USA, in June last year [Photo by Korea Bio Association]

BIO USA is the world's largest comprehensive bio convention, attended by more than 20,000 visitors from over 9,000 companies across 88 countries. It features exhibitions, conferences, partnering, and various side events. This year’s convention theme is "Where Business + Breakthroughs Converge," covering not only technology but also expanded industries such as corporate investment attraction and national bio policies.

Korea Bio and KOTRA have been operating the Korean Pavilion annually as representatives of Korea since the early 2000s as part of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s government-supported overseas exhibition projects, marking the 21st year this year. This year, the scale will be expanded to more than twice that of previous years, supporting 28 companies and institutions engaged in various fields of the bio industry, not limited to pharmaceuticals such as platform technology, contract services, medical devices, new drug development, and materials, parts, and equipment (SoBuJang).

Korea Bio will also represent Korea at various events held during BIO USA. First, it will attend the International Council of Biotechnology Associations (ICBA) General Assembly, where representatives from bio associations of 32 countries gather to share the status of their bio industries and discuss cooperation measures. The meeting will share updates on the World Health Organization (WHO) pandemic preparedness, which has been discussed annually since COVID-19, as well as the industrial status of each country. In addition, following the recent introduction of the U.S. Biosecurity Act, Korea Bio will share the current status of the domestic industry amid ongoing investment sentiment contraction and emphasize the importance of policy cooperation with various countries.

Linked to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed with the U.S. Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) during President Yoon Seok-yeol’s U.S. visit last year, the "Korea-U.S. Bio Industry Cooperation Roundtable" will be held for the second consecutive year to bring together bio companies from both countries and promote collaboration. This roundtable will be attended by government policy officials from the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, focusing on cooperation between the allied countries following the introduction of the U.S. Biosecurity Act.

On the 5th, Korea Bio, KOTRA, the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT), Korea Exchange, and Invest Seoul will jointly host "Korea Biotech Partnership (KBTP) 2024" to support the global market entry of K-Bio.

This side event will particularly introduce Seoul’s overseas corporate attraction projects and the KOSDAQ listing market to overseas bio companies to promote the attractiveness of the Korean bio industry. Speakers from Invest Seoul, Korea Exchange, Korea Investment Partners, Samsung Securities, HwaWoo Law Firm, and Samil Accounting Corporation will present to facilitate the entry of leading overseas biotech companies into Korea. At the subsequent networking event, Samsung Biologics, SK Biopharm, and Alteogen will share cases and insights on the global expansion of domestic companies. Global company MSD will also participate to share experiences on the potential and prospects of the Korean bio market.

Hwang Juri, Head of Exchange and Cooperation at Korea Bio, said, "Not only are we number one in terms of the number of participants, but we also feel unprecedented interest in cooperation demand with domestic companies." She added, "We hope to maximize all opportunities at this BIO USA to achieve fruitful results such as investment attraction, joint research, and technology export, and especially to leverage this momentum that is receiving national attention."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.