Việt Nam và phương hướng phát triển công nghệ
Bioentrepreneur
Published online: 12 July 2004
Vietnam to refocus biotech
Jen Lin Liu Jen Lin Liu is a freelance writer based in Shanghai
Vietnamese biotech has historically been grounded in agriculture, but it will soon tackle drugs and related products. As the Vietnamese government prepares to release a detailed 15-year plan for national biotech development by the end of 2004, government officials expect the country's emphasis will shift to the production of pharmaceutical products, diagnostic tools and vaccines.
But the country needs more capital and human resources to truly stand out among its southeast Asian neighbors. Vietnamese biotech currently focuses on agriculture, animal husbandry and tropical organisms—research areas that were expanded this year with the establishment of five national biotech research centers, which will be completed by 2007.
The government has given each institute between $3 million and $3.5 million in seed money, says Binh Le Tran, the director of the Institute of Biotechnology (IBT) in Hanoi. The centers will use buildings and staff from existing institutes so that most of the money can pay for new equipment.
Salleh Ismael believes that Malaysia could serve as a better example than Singapore for Vietnam's biotech development. In addition to establishing the five centers, in late 2003 the government approved $400 million for biotech research for 2003–2010. Le Tran expects that the Vietnamese government's 15-year plan will increase federal investment in biotech by 15%. The IBT, which belongs to the National Center of Natural Science and Technology of Vietnam, functions as the country's central research center, coordinating biotech efforts within the country and with other southeast Asian nations. For example, the IBT is beginning a new collaborative project with Singapore and Indonesia in which the genetic makeup of Vietnam's 54 ethnic groups will be analyzed to help study diseases that are specific to Vietnamese. The institute also runs training courses for the nation's researchers in areas such as protein analysis and bioinformatics, which are also valuable for drug discovery.
But some significant obstacles stand in the way of Vietnam's biotech development, such as the lack of skilled human resources, according to Philippe Scholtes, the representative for the United Nations Industrial Development Organization in Hanoi. "Unlike in China or India, where you have a very strong pool of scientists that have worked overseas, the Vietnamese government has little interest in bringing back scientists who may have opposed the regime in the past," says Scholtes. He believes that the government should work harder to facilitate more international academic exchanges in biotechnology.
Le Tran says that Vietnam is at a point where "we need to catch up" to other fast-developing nations in biotech like Singapore and Thailand. Singapore is more attractive to invest in than Vietnam, says Jonathan Wang, the managing director of WI Harper, because "the Singapore government is pushing strong in the life sciences. We have not heard strong noise from other southeast Asian countries" like Vietnam.
Salleh Ismael, the CEO of Technology Park Malaysia Corporation in Kuala Lumpur, says that it is impossible to compare Vietnam to Singapore, because "Singapore is a rich man. They can afford to pay high costs to hire scientists."
Ismael believes that Malaysia, which is generally considered more advanced in biotech than Vietnam, could serve as a better example for Vietnam's biotech development. Like Vietnam, Malaysia is an agriculturally focused country, says Ismael, who is exploring the possibility of setting up a biodiversity center in Vietnam. "Vietnam is a dynamic country with 80 million people and huge growth," he says. "It is near China, which is a good potential market for Vietnam to export to. It also has a huge coastal area for marine biotechnology."
Although some disagree about whether Vietnam should stick to agbiotech research or move on to medicines, the country is at an interesting crossroad. Scientists in the country note that Vietnam already manufactures nine of ten essential vaccines for local vaccination programs, which reduces the need for imports. But given the "pressing need to raise the output of the agricultural sector," according to Scholtes, it may be wise for Vietnam to stay the course in agbiotech and leave other southeast Asian nations like Singapore to focus on medicines.
Bioentrepreneur
Published online: 12 July 2004
Vietnam to refocus biotech
Jen Lin Liu Jen Lin Liu is a freelance writer based in Shanghai
Vietnamese biotech has historically been grounded in agriculture, but it will soon tackle drugs and related products. As the Vietnamese government prepares to release a detailed 15-year plan for national biotech development by the end of 2004, government officials expect the country's emphasis will shift to the production of pharmaceutical products, diagnostic tools and vaccines.
But the country needs more capital and human resources to truly stand out among its southeast Asian neighbors. Vietnamese biotech currently focuses on agriculture, animal husbandry and tropical organisms—research areas that were expanded this year with the establishment of five national biotech research centers, which will be completed by 2007.
The government has given each institute between $3 million and $3.5 million in seed money, says Binh Le Tran, the director of the Institute of Biotechnology (IBT) in Hanoi. The centers will use buildings and staff from existing institutes so that most of the money can pay for new equipment.
Salleh Ismael believes that Malaysia could serve as a better example than Singapore for Vietnam's biotech development. In addition to establishing the five centers, in late 2003 the government approved $400 million for biotech research for 2003–2010. Le Tran expects that the Vietnamese government's 15-year plan will increase federal investment in biotech by 15%. The IBT, which belongs to the National Center of Natural Science and Technology of Vietnam, functions as the country's central research center, coordinating biotech efforts within the country and with other southeast Asian nations. For example, the IBT is beginning a new collaborative project with Singapore and Indonesia in which the genetic makeup of Vietnam's 54 ethnic groups will be analyzed to help study diseases that are specific to Vietnamese. The institute also runs training courses for the nation's researchers in areas such as protein analysis and bioinformatics, which are also valuable for drug discovery.
But some significant obstacles stand in the way of Vietnam's biotech development, such as the lack of skilled human resources, according to Philippe Scholtes, the representative for the United Nations Industrial Development Organization in Hanoi. "Unlike in China or India, where you have a very strong pool of scientists that have worked overseas, the Vietnamese government has little interest in bringing back scientists who may have opposed the regime in the past," says Scholtes. He believes that the government should work harder to facilitate more international academic exchanges in biotechnology.
Le Tran says that Vietnam is at a point where "we need to catch up" to other fast-developing nations in biotech like Singapore and Thailand. Singapore is more attractive to invest in than Vietnam, says Jonathan Wang, the managing director of WI Harper, because "the Singapore government is pushing strong in the life sciences. We have not heard strong noise from other southeast Asian countries" like Vietnam.
Salleh Ismael, the CEO of Technology Park Malaysia Corporation in Kuala Lumpur, says that it is impossible to compare Vietnam to Singapore, because "Singapore is a rich man. They can afford to pay high costs to hire scientists."
Ismael believes that Malaysia, which is generally considered more advanced in biotech than Vietnam, could serve as a better example for Vietnam's biotech development. Like Vietnam, Malaysia is an agriculturally focused country, says Ismael, who is exploring the possibility of setting up a biodiversity center in Vietnam. "Vietnam is a dynamic country with 80 million people and huge growth," he says. "It is near China, which is a good potential market for Vietnam to export to. It also has a huge coastal area for marine biotechnology."
Although some disagree about whether Vietnam should stick to agbiotech research or move on to medicines, the country is at an interesting crossroad. Scientists in the country note that Vietnam already manufactures nine of ten essential vaccines for local vaccination programs, which reduces the need for imports. But given the "pressing need to raise the output of the agricultural sector," according to Scholtes, it may be wise for Vietnam to stay the course in agbiotech and leave other southeast Asian nations like Singapore to focus on medicines.
