Launch of the Pan-Government Top-Level Public-Private Cooperation Body 'National Bio Committee'

Choi Sang-mok: "Organically Connecting Individual Policies, Uniting Public and Private Capabilities Across All Bio Sectors"
Serving as the Inter-Ministerial Control Tower... Nurturing 110,000 Bio Talents
Becoming a Global Top 5 Bio Power by 2035 Through Infrastructure, R&D Innovation, and Industry Transformation

The 'National Bio Committee,' the highest-level inter-ministerial public-private cooperation body and the focal point for establishing national bio policies, was launched on the 23rd.

Choi Sang-mok, Acting President and Deputy Prime Minister as well as Minister of Strategy and Finance, stated at the National Bio Committee inauguration ceremony held at Seoul Bio Hub, "By launching the National Bio Committee as the highest-level governance body across ministries, we will organically connect policies individually pursued by related agencies and unite the capabilities of the public and private sectors across all bio fields including health and medical care, food, resources, energy, and environment."

Acting President Choi added, "For South Korea, which has entered the $30,000 per capita income era with a manufacturing-centered economy such as semiconductors and automobiles, fostering the bio industry as a new economic engine is necessary for further advancement."

Acting President and Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, who is also the Minister of Economy and Finance, along with members of the National Bio Committee, attended the launch ceremony and the first meeting of the National Bio Committee held on the afternoon of the 23rd at Seoul Bio Hub in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, and participated in the national anthem ceremony. Provided by the Ministry of Science and ICT

The National Bio Committee consolidates national capabilities across all bio sectors including life sciences, biohealth, biomanufacturing, and agricultural and marine food products to efficiently deliberate and coordinate policy formulation, research and development, industrial promotion, and regulatory relief. It will serve as the control tower for bio-related inter-ministerial coordination.

To this end, the committee has established three subcommittees under it: ▲Bio Science & Medical, ▲Bio Resources & Innovation, and ▲Bio Manufacturing & Transformation; three special committees: ▲Digital Bio, ▲Biosecurity, and ▲Bio Convergence, as well as ▲Bio Regulation; and various consultative bodies including ▲Public Research Institutions, ▲R&D Management Specialized Institutions, ▲Bio & Health Data, and ▲Bio Clusters, supported by a dedicated support team.

The committee aims to activate various support measures to realize South Korea as one of the top five global bio powers by 2035 through the 3I transformation: 'Infrastructure (I) Transformation,' 'Research & Development (R&D) Innovation Transformation,' and 'Industry (I) Transformation.'

For the 'Infrastructure Transformation,' organic cooperation beyond regions and sectors will be promoted. First, a 'Korean-style Bio Cluster' will be established to create an ecosystem linking and converging fields such as Red, Green, White, and Blue Bio, spanning from research and development to commercialization. To strengthen collaboration, a 'Bio Cluster Consultative Body' will be launched, and a 'Virtual Platform' connecting over 20 bio clusters nationwide will be built.

Scientific reorganization of approval and review standards for new products and technologies incorporating advanced technologies such as AI will be undertaken, and full-cycle regulatory innovation from development to clinical trials, approval, and international cooperation will be promoted. Additionally, nine ministries including the Ministry of Science and ICT will collaborate to actively nurture 110,000 multidisciplinary and practical talents in the biohealth sector by 2027.

'Korea Bio 3I Grand Transformation Strategy (Draft)' announced by the National Bio Committee. Provided by the Ministry of Science and ICT

For the 'R&D Innovation Transformation,' the committee will dramatically improve research speed and accuracy through convergence between the bio sector and various other fields. Data scattered across industry, academia, research institutes, hospitals, and government will be linked in one place to maximize accessibility and utilization, and a global-level data ecosystem will be established, transforming the paradigm of bio research and development.

Through the committee’s 'Biohealth Data Consultative Body,' government data linkage will be strengthened first, and data held as institution-specific projects by 15 public research institutions in the bio sector will be fully opened, with plans to expand this to the entire public domain in the future.

For the 'Industry Transformation,' support will be provided for productization to realize biotech technologies and fundamental innovation and performance verification in bio manufacturing to enhance market accessibility. Support will be given to the manufacturing base of domestic biotech companies that have technology but lack production facilities.

AI-based research and manufacturing innovation across all bio fields will also be promoted. A public biofoundry utilizing AI and robotics technology will be established by 2029 to realize automation, acceleration, and standardization. The tentative 'K-BioMADE (BioMADE) Project' will support the entire bio manufacturing cycle (End-to-End) including manufacturing technology, processes, scale-up, and demonstration of candidate substances developed at the biofoundry.

Lee Chang-yoon, First Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, is briefing at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

To foster bio as a representative industry following semiconductors, strong sectors will be strengthened further, new markets will be rapidly developed, and the foundational materials, parts, and equipment industries will be robustly supported. The current 80 core materials, parts, and equipment items will be expanded to over 100 and gradually localized. Next year, a materials, parts, and equipment demonstration support center will be established in Osong, Chungbuk, to support global standard accredited testing and analysis.

Lee Chang-yoon, First Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, said at a briefing at the Government Seoul Office, "Bio is a key driver of global economic growth, with the global market expected to grow to about $3.3 trillion by 2027. As bio manufacturing technology has emerged as a core element of national security during the pandemic period, we have identified key tasks for South Korea’s bio transformation in terms of infrastructure, R&D innovation, and industrial innovation."

Meanwhile, the National Bio Committee is composed of 12 ex officio government members including Acting President Choi as chairman, ministers of bio-related ministries such as the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Presidential Office’s Chief of Science and Technology, and the National Security Office’s Third Deputy Director, as well as 24 private members including Vice Chairman Lee Sang-yeop (KAIST professor), Ko Han-seung (Head of Samsung Electronics Future Business Planning Group), and Noh Yeon-hong (Chairman of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association).

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