Encouraging an Environment for Pharmaceutical R&D in China

Rising to the challenge of increased scrutiny of drug quality and safety, seizing the opportunity for development, manufacturing, and distribution of pharmaceuticals for the global network and anticipating the rapid growth of the domestic pharmaceutical market in the years to come, China, with support from the international community, has been making sweeping changes to improve its environment for pharmaceutical R&D. The government, industry, and academia are joining together to improve the regulatory framework, industrial capacity, and human resources that will be needed. A brief summary of these changes is provided in this perspective article with a focus on government efforts, the driving force behind these sweeping changes.