Are you active in the field of development and manufacturing of promising innovative therapies? Are you a researcher, entrepreneur, clinician, investor or policymaker, and would you like to connect with Swiss experts to exchange knowledge and explore possibilities for cooperation? If so, join this innovation mission to Switzerland.
Sunday 21 April 08:00 CEST until
Thursday 25 April 20:00 CEST
During the mission, we bring together experts from both Life Sciences ecosystems to connect on innovative therapies development and manufacturing, with particular focus on cell- and gene therapies. We explore collaboration opportunities dedicated to faster, brighter, better, and more affordable development, production, and availability of new patients therapies.
For whom?
If you are a researcher, entrepreneur, engineer, clinician, business developer, investor or policymaker, affiliated with a knowledge institution, (academic) medical centre, (technology) company, patient- or government organisation, and active in the theme mentioned above, participating in this mission could be of interest to you.
The Netherlands and Switzerland
What's in it for you?
This visit program allows you to be right in the centre of the Swiss developments in biotech-pharma. The mission is linked:
- to the Swiss Biotech Day, a premier biotechnology conference in Basel, Switzerland;
- to the bilateral public-private R&D call on Cell & Gene Therapy, in development by Innosuisse, Health~Holland and Netherlands Enterprice Agency. The launch of the call is expected in mid-February 2024. For project building, a dedicated R&D seminar is foreseen during this mission.
In addition, you will have the opportunity to pitch your research and/or organisation, to participate in panel discussions, and to meet experts and potential project partners. Read the draft programme for more details.
Dutch-Swiss Life Sciences Ecosystems
The Netherlands and Switzerland are both renowned for their innovation ecosystems, notably in Life Sciences and Health (LSH). Switzerland has ranked at the top of the Global Innovation Index for the past 13 years. The Swiss biotech-pharmaceutical sector boasts considerable strengths, characterized by a robust ecosystem that integrates advanced research, a highly skilled workforce, and an enabling regulatory framework. The sector benefits from solid collaborations between academia and industry, fostering innovation. Additionally, Switzerland's well-established infrastructure and access to capital contribute to the sector's resilience and competitiveness on the global stage.
Switzerland is one of the Netherlands’ most relevant partners in (LSH) research and innovation cooperation. This is illustrated by the extensive collaborations in European innovation programs. The Dutch LSH sector would like to build on the collaborations with the Swiss life sciences innovation ecosystem. By combining the strengths of both ecosystems, we can increase the success of our research and development communities while leveraging economic opportunities for enterprises, small and large, and most of all, creating societal impact with accessible and affordable healthcare.
Innovative Therapies
In recent decades, new medicines have improved survival rates and quality of life for many patients worldwide. Some have changed the natural course of diseases such as HIV and certain cancers from a terminal illness to a manageable chronic or even curable disease.
Despite the undeniable advances, policymakers and other stakeholders in many countries have become increasingly concerned about the outputs of the pharmaceutical innovation system:
- The prices of many new medicines make affordable access challenging for both payers and patients.
- The R&D process is costly and complex.
- The expected market rewards are sometimes insufficient to incentivize the development of some badly needed products.
- The costs and pricing structure of the pharmaceutical market are often the subject of discussion. This poses a current and urgent challenge for ongoing and new developments, particularly for innovative therapies.
Innovative therapies like cell and gene therapies represent both the hopeful and the concerning sides of modern healthcare. The Netherlands has the ambition to tackle the challenges and seize the opportunities for innovation in therapeutic development in this context. In this innovation mission, strengthening the international collaboration options in this endeavour are explored.
More about the program draft, costs and registration, can be found here.
Registration
If you are interested participating in this innovation mission, please register before 31 January 2024, via the registration form. Definitive participation depends on the number of available places and how well your organisation fits within the scope and objective of this mission.
Source: RVO