President Lee vows to cut red tape in bio industry; S. Korea aims for global powerhouse

We begin our coverage with Korea's vision to become a top-five global leader in the bio industry by 2030.

President Lee Jae Myung says he will take an "open approach" toward regulatory reform in the bio sector.

He was at a discussion table today in Incheon, setting a goal to double Korea's bio exports within five years.

Our Presidential Office correspondent Yoon Jung-min reports.

The bio industry is key to Korea's future growth engines, and the government is "open" to cutting red tape.

That was a message emphasized by President Lee Jae Myung on Friday, when speaking at an open roundtable in the city of Incheon, where a bio-specialized complex is located.

"We need to create an environment where researchers and companies can work freely, creatively, and fairly. For the companies competing on the global stage on behalf of Korea, I believe it's important to support them from behind."

With biotechnology picked as one of the administration's five next-generation growth engines, Lee noted the need to expedite R&D certification procedures and ensure a fair system where no monopolies are allowed.

A goal was set to double bio exports by 2030 and make Korea one of the world's top five biotech powerhouses, for which a policy vision was laid out.

"We will improve regulations so that people in the field can actually feel a difference. Second, we will accelerate growth by linking technology, manpower and capital. Lastly, we will strengthen global competitiveness through corporate growth."

For instance, the authorities vowed to preemptively create a roadmap for new drugs designed by AI, and shorten the review period for biosimilar products to less than a year, ---this used to take more than a year.

Present at the roundtable, which was broadcast live in full, were more than 100 people from the bio sector, including Samsung Biologics.

"In Korea, there's only one market operator, and it performs corporate reviews, IPO reviews, and market monitoring, creating a systemic limit. I suggest that the market monitoring system be separated as an independent organization."

"It's a good point for a review. We need to diversify the market by separating the monitoring function."

Also suggested were calls for more funding for companies entering costly clinical trials, faster drug approval reviews, and ensuring long-term research stability.

Yoon Jung-min, Arirang News.