The country has raked in over RM1.16bil in cumulative gross national income from sponsored clinical research since 2012, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
In his keynote speech at the launch of the Clinical Research Malaysia (CRM) Trial Connect 2024, read out by Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad on Thursday (May 9), Anwar urged the country to take advantage of opportunities in the field by removing barriers to clinical research, improve the ease of doing business here and reduce bureaucracy while adhering to standards.
He said as the clinical research industry grows, supporting services such as CROs, laboratories, manufacturing plants and logistic services will see expansion as well.
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In his keynote speech at the launch of the Clinical Research Malaysia (CRM) Trial Connect 2024, read out by Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad on Thursday (May 9), Anwar urged the country to take advantage of opportunities in the field by removing barriers to clinical research, improve the ease of doing business here and reduce bureaucracy while adhering to standards.
He said as the clinical research industry grows, supporting services such as CROs, laboratories, manufacturing plants and logistic services will see expansion as well.
Read more at https://tinyurl.com/ycxkzube
WATCH MORE: https://thestartv.com/c/news
SUBSCRIBE: https://cutt.ly/TheStar
LIKE: https://fb.com/TheStarOnline
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NewsTranscript
00:00It is truly a great pleasure and I am truly delighted to be here among the clinical research
00:19industry players at this conference and I've been hearing exciting news and to be truthful
00:28I've been following this news about the progress of and recent developments of sponsored clinical
00:35research in Malaysia. This is especially with the record-breaking performance achieved last
00:43year in which sponsored clinical research has generated a cumulative gross national
00:50income of 1.16 billion ringgit since 2012. Now the establishment of Clinical Research Malaysia or CRM
01:00to drive and catalyse the industry in Malaysia has proven to be a successful strategic initiative by
01:08Ministry of Health. Now what is immensely astounding is the fact that CRM has been self-sufficient
01:18financially for the last six years and while doing so is significantly and positively impacting
01:26the country's clinical research plans. Shall we give them a big round of applause for driving clinical research as a value-based
01:41industry in addition to bringing in invaluable foreign direct investment and catalyzing local
01:49ones as well. Now this landscape further supports the downstream growth in this country especially
01:56in the enabling domestic production of pharmaceuticals. The potential investment in our human capital, expansion of
02:03industry capacity, economic and financial gains from increased exports as well as Malaysia's
02:10advancement in the global value chain is indeed immense and significant. We are already observing this
02:19the rippling effect from the growth of the clinical research industry with multinational pharmaceuticals and
02:27contract research organisations, CROs, growing their presence in Malaysia thus making this country as the heart in the region.
02:37The global clinical trial market was valued at over 80 billion US dollars in 2023 with a projected growth of 6.5% annually.
02:49Half of this is now very much committed within the Asia-Pacific region especially in China, South Korea, Japan and Australia.
02:59Now this would of course is in fact reflects of the importance and I truly believe that Southeast Asian nation by way of in comparison to the East Asia, in comparison to South Asia, Southeast Asian nation are in fact the sleeping giant.
03:28And I would want to believe that they are a sleeping giant because it is one of the most diverse locations with skilled workforce and supportive infrastructure. And we are one of the Southeast Asian nations.
03:42As genomic lab precision medicine is poised to transform modern healthcare around the world, Asia, and I would want to believe Southeast Asia, which includes
03:57of course Southeast Asia, holds immense potential for the adoption of precision medicine riding on such a unique genetic diversity.
04:10As the clinical research industry grows, supporting services such as the CROs, the laboratories, manufacturing plants and logistic services will see expansions as well.
04:21This is where more skilled workforce is created to support the industry state. We have already observed this in for example Malaysia where its data management centre was set up.
04:35This is not to support the region. Additionally, we have established one of the central oncology laboratory. In Malaysia, we are one of only four global locations of their footprint as contributed to the employment of scientists and bioinformatics skills and personnel in the country.
05:00Their socio-economic value brought about by clinical research is impactful. There are over 2,700 skilled jobs recorded in the clinical research field last year. Not just jobs, but high-paying jobs that would get us out of our middle-income trap for decades now.
05:23Today, we have over 36,000 participants in Malaysia that have taken part in various global clinical trials. Given their central and clinical role to the process, in conjunction with the celebration of Clinical Trials Day this month, I would like to acknowledge their role in contributing to medical advancement.
05:43I would also like to convey my gratitude to investigators of clinical trials whose commitment and perseverance has ensured the quality delivery of studies. Many are acknowledged as top and first recruiters globally and regionally.
06:01The ICC in Malaysia is a global clinical trial map. A monumental achievement can only be built on a solid foundation, which is the clinical trial community. We can do so only with the spirit of humanity, stability, and sustainability as alluded by the CEO of CRM earlier.
06:27So how do we progress further? I cannot over-emphasize the importance of staying comparative and evolving with the global developments. We should seize opportunities, endeavor to advance reforms, and remove barriers to clinical research.
06:45This must be reflected in the ease of doing business.
07:15Investment opportunities for clinical research industries must be facilitated. Regulations and policies must be updated to remain relevant to the current market needs or unmet needs of the industry.
07:35The Malaysian government truly recognizes the value proposition of making this country a global clinical trial hub, as well as its qualitative contribution to healthcare.
07:46However, much is to be done for this region to flourish and to remain an attractive destination. I hope this conference would spark discussion and ideas on how we could enable all this.
07:59I think this opportunity to again express my gratitude to all that have contributed to this ecosystem, including sponsors of course, especially the industrial players, healthcare professionals, and the clinical trials participants.