On Wednesday 2 July, the European Commission presented its ‘Life Sciences Strategy’, aimed at positioning Europe as the most attractive location for this field by 2030. In addition to funding, the regulatory framework also needs to be changed to stimulate the sector.
“We are losing ground to competitors like the US and China. Yet Europe was at the forefront of all these areas 10 years ago”, Commissioner for Health, Olivér Várhelyi, told a press conference, referring to clinical trials.
Ekaterina Zakharieva, European Commissioner for Research, pointed out that life sciences make a significant contribution to the EU economy, “adding nearly €1.5 trillion in value to the EU economy and supporting 29 million jobs across the Union in medicine, food and sustainable production”.
Under this strategy, the Commission will mobilise €300 million to stimulate the acquisition of innovations in life sciences, in areas such as adaptation to climate change, next-generation vaccines and affordable cancer solutions. It will also set up a coordination group to align policies and funding across sectors and support engagement with key stakeholders, including industry and citizens.
“In terms of unlocking public and private investment, we would like to create an interface between life science investors and corporates together with SMEs and those who are looking for funding to make access easier and simpler”, explained an official from the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (DG RTD). To speed up market access for innovations, the Commission will propose an EU legislative act on biotechnology.
The strategy also includes optimising the research and innovation ecosystem, in particular through an investment plan that will facilitate the funding of multinational clinical trials and strengthen European clinical research infrastructures. It will mobilise up to €100 million under the Horizon Europe work programmes 2026-2027 to develop and deploy solutions based on the microbiome. In addition, €250 million will be made available for cross-sectoral life science technologies.
Further information: https://aeur.eu/f/hoa (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)