Growth strategy for Greek pharma industry

An action plan to unlock the huge potential of the pharmaceutical industry in Greece and underscore its role as a key driver of growth in the Greek economy was the outcome of an event organised by the Greek research-based pharma trade group SFEE, in the context of the Greek Presidency of the European Union and the eHealth Forum 2014, to launch the study “A Growth Strategy for the Pharmaceutical Industry,” prepared by the Foundation of Economic and Industrial Research (FEIR/IOBE).

At a time when an exit of the Greek economy from a six-year recession is being sought, the pharmaceutical industry, with innovation at the core of its activity, offers a real way out.

The first speaker, Angelos Tsakanikas, Assistant Professor at the National Technical University of Athens and research director of FEIR/IOBE, explained the key points of the study. As he stated, “The pharmaceutical sector in Greece seems to stand out amid a poor National Research and Innovation System, with a strong patenting performance and a significant increase in its R&D activity over the past few decades, opening up the path to innovative treatments. The pharmaceutical industry accounts for 22% of total R&D in Greece and has the potential to do even better, with appropriate policies.”