Vice-president of the Government of Catalonia Pere Aragonès and Director General for Research and Innovation in Health Robert Fabregat visited the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) yesterday, where they met with Biocat, CataloniaBio & HealthTech, start-ups and investors to learn about the healthcare and life sciences sector’s potential as a driving force for Catalan innovation and competitiveness after the Covid-19 pandemic.

The PCB was represented by CEO Maria Terrades and Biocat, by its CEO, Jordi Naval. Representing CataloniaBioHT at the event were Judit Anido, president of the association and general manager of Mosaic Biomedicals; Jaume Amat, first vice-president of the association and CEO of Specipig; Montserrat Vendrell, board member and managing partner at Alta Life Sciences; and Isabel Amat, board member and Director of Innovation and Pipeline Management at ReigJofre.

During the Covid-19 crisis, the sector has proven to be innovative, flexible and able to adapt totackle future healthcare crises, which will only increase in this globalised world.

While in recent years the healthcare and life sciences sector in Catalonia has shown sustained growth in the number of new companies and in both national and international investment (over €100 million a year), Covid-19 has brought to light the need to further strengthen it so that the science of excellence carried out at research centres and hospitals can be transferred to create real solutions to improve patients’ health and wellbeing (drugs, vaccines, diagnostics, medical equipment and technology, digital health, etc.).

“We have to have a powerful business sector that can develop, produce and market innovative solutions for health,” commented CataloniaBioHT representatives.

Investing in research isn’t enough. We have to complete the value chain and commit to the health industry as a strategic focal point for Catalonia. “The industry is willing to invest in order to ensure there is a fabric of strong, local companies, but the Government has to support this with specific policies like innovative public procurement, public-private investment and incentives,” explained CataloniaBioHT board members at the meeting. “Only with a strong commercial and industrial fabric will Catalonia have industry as a driving force for innovation to bring solutions to market,” they noted.

CataloniaBioHT has offered to pool efforts with the Government to work on new initiatives, contributing the views and needs of start-ups and companies in the sector.

Meetings with ACCIÓ and Catalan Ministry of Enterprise and Knowledge

Additionally, in recent weeks the CataloniaBioHT board also participated in a video conference with the presidents of the Catalan clusters, organised by ACCIÓ, and a meeting of companies in the sector, both with Catalan Minister of Enterprise and Knowledge Maria Àngels Chacón. 

At these events, they shared the impact CataloniaBioHT companies have had during the Covid-19 pandemic and highlighted their potential for developing solutions to this and future healthcare crises and, therefore, their importance as part of a strategic sector and a driving force for the Catalan economy.