HEIDELBERG, Germany, Thursday, October 7th 2010 [ME NewsWire]:
The largest delegation of biotech companies ever visited Heidelberg to attend the conference of the German-Israeli Life Sciences Committee. Representatives of Israeli and German life-science companies discussed their respective enterprises with one another in order to pave the way for future cooperation.
(BUSINESS WIRE)-- At the second annual conference of the German-Israeli Life Sciences Committee (GILSC) approximately 70 representatives from 11 Israeli and around 20 German biotech companies presented their firms and gave an overview about their areas of business. The representatives had the chance to convene in one-to-one-meetings with potential business partners and to discuss possible future cooperation. The conference was hosted by the Biotechnology Cluster Rhine-Neckar (BioRN).
Yoram Ben-Zeev, Israeli ambassador to Germany, declared: »There is no doubt that in the future there will be many challenges in the life sciences – in Germany as well as in Israel. The life-science sector in both countries has developed enormously in recent years. The exchange of experiences between German and Israeli experts makes sense, in my opinion, in order to learn from each other, to plan joint projects and thus to face the challenges of tomorrow. With their event the GILSC and the biotech cluster around Heidelberg have taken an important step towards the achievement of this goal.«
Hans-Joachim Otto, Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, Germany, stated in his speech: »You could hardly have chosen a better place for your annual conference than here in the heart of one of the most innovative regions in Germany.« He highlighted the bilateral cooperation in life sciences as a motor of innovation and referred to the High-Tech Strategy for Germany and the Leading-Edge Cluster Competition which is intended to take Germany to the top of the league of technologically advanced nations. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research launched the competition in 2007 and the BioRN Cluster became the Leading-Edge Cluster for »Cell-Based and Molecular Medicine«.
Germany and Israel have cooperated in research for almost 50 years. In the BioRN Cluster the German-Israeli cooperation in the field of cancer research is already tradition: the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) in Jerusalem, Israel, have been working together for more than 30 years. Companies in the BioRN Cluster with a focus on medical biotechnology now also want to intensify economic relations with Israel. »Small and medium-sized Israeli companies have a major innovative potential, especially in the field of stem cells and biomarkers. As such, they are predestined for cooperative undertakings and partnerships with companies from our cluster.« emphasized Dr. Christian Tidona, managing director of the BioRN Cluster Management.
»Israel and Germany are facing similar challenges of rising health care costs and aging populations. The GILSC fosters the creation of partnerships and common programs between the life-science industries of both countries in order to address these challenges in a joint effort,« said Dr. Simone Botti, Chairman of the GILSC, during the conference. He further declared: »The GILSC wants to promote the respective strengths in innovation, financing, policy and global leadership present in both countries, to help in the development of viable and strong life-science industries.«
About GILSC
The German-Israeli Life Sciences Committee (GILSC) was founded in April 2009 by the German-Israeli Economic Association and the Israeli-German Chamber of Industry & Commerce.
The aim of the GILSC is to further improve bilateral relations in life sciences in both business and innovation. To achieve this goal, the Committee supports Israel’s and Germany’s life-science community with its networking activities. The GILSC currently has approximately 150 members in both countries.
About the BioRN Cluster
The German Biotech Cluster Rhine-Neckar (BioRN) is focused on personalized medicine and cancer research. The cluster includes renowned academic research institutions, 70 small and medium-sized biotech enterprises, as well as big pharmaceutical and diagnostic companies such as Roche Diagnostics (Mannheim), Merck Serono (Darmstadt) and Abbott (Ludwigshafen).
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