Kewen Jin, Ph. D
China Consulting
Dr. Kewen Jin
is Currently a consultant and investment advisor for life science industry companies, based in Shanghai, China. Formerly a marketing, business development, and international operation executive at Wyeth (1992-2000, formerly American Home Products; Associate Director, Global Strategic Marketing; Director of China Operations; Head of pharmaceutical business for Northern China); COO/President of a medical internet start-up in China (2000); General Manager of Sales & Marketing for ChinaCare Group, the healthcare subsidiary of a major Asian conglomerate (2001). Trained in medicine (Shanghai Second Medical University); molecular biology (Rockefeller University); health economics (University of Pennsylvania); and finance (Columbia University).Abstract
On the one hand, the confluence of several macro drivers will continue to propel a robust growth of the healthcare market in China. These drivers include high economic growth, the aging and urbanization of the population; the disease spectrum evolves towards that of developed countries, and the reform and partial privatization of healthcare delivery and financing. On the other hand, the dearth of China-developed and China-owned intellectual property will pose the single most challenging hurdle to the development of a competitive domestic life science industry. While it is incumbent upon the government and the Chinese society at large to develop an "ecology" that will induce the capital market and the industry to invest in intellectual property generation, the sobering reality is the domestic Chinese industry will not be able to compete with global leading companies head to head in many, if not most, of the key technology areas.
The domestic industry in China need to find its position in the global life science industry value chain and focus its finite resources in areas where China has strengths. These will include, among others, generics (both chemical and biologics) and bulk/intermediaries manufacturing; products mainly addressing the needs endemic to China and Asia; "OEM" –type manufacturing in medical device and diagnostics. In R&D, the domestic industry should focus on areas where there are unique resources China can leverage upon, such as the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Given the good educational infrastructure and vast pool of well-trained but cost-effective scientists and engineers, there are substantial opportunities in technical service and contract research out-sourced from the global companies. The domestic companies need to be more proactive in seeking partnership and technology transfer from overseas. The large number of Chinese scientists and manager working in the global life science industry can play an important role in the development of a competitive Chinese life science industry.