Interview with Tom Keith Roach, President, AstraZeneca South Korea
You have recently taken over the position as head of AstraZeneca in South Korea, after several years working in China. What view did you have of the Korean pharmaceutical sector…
The Korea Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, since its foundation in 1945, along with pharmaceutical companies, has been committed to improve healthcare for all mankind and develop pharmaceutical industry.
With about 190 member companies, KPMA expanded R&D investments since the implementation of Drug Substance Patent Law in 1987 to place Korea in the world’s 10th country to commercialize new molecular entities in 2003. Up until the end of 2008, 14 new molecular entities products were developed in the country, with 45 projects from 29 companies undergoing clinical studies, 61 potential candidates currently under new drugs development phases and 40 cases of licensing out in 14 countries.
In order to manufacture safe medicines of the highest quality, 65 companies collectively invested 2 trillion won to upgrade manufacturing plants in compliance with c-GMP standards. In addition, to increase credibility in the international pharmaceutical market, Fair Competition Committee was established and Hotline Reporting Center for code compliance complaints was activated to escalate efforts in making all transaction as fair as possible. Market size of Korean pharmaceutical industry, gauged by values of drugs manufactured, in 2000 was 7.89 trillion won and the size grew substantially to 13.43 trillion won in 2007, almost doubling the size. Such a significant increase is attributed to rapid aging of the population, external and political factors that favorably affected the industry as well as continuous investments in R&D and GMP upgrades.
KPMA aims to strengthen collaboration of Korean companies with pharmaceutical companies already having experience in product launches in the overseas markets.
Contact details
161 Hyoryeong-ro, Seocho-gu, Seoul 137-849 Korea
TEL: +82 2 581 2101 / 2102
FAX: +82 2 581 2106
http://www.kpma.or.kr
kpma@kpma.or.kr
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