An Ambitious Strategy for Localizing Health Technology
Turkey is preparing to implement a package of technical and industrial initiatives as part of the "2027 Presidential Program," with the goal of reducing reliance on imports in the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors. The plan focuses on enhancing Research and Development (R&D) capabilities and localizing the production of vaccines and biological drugs, with a specific focus on developing cancer diagnostic kits locally through strategic partnerships between the public and private sectors.
What is Changing Practically?
The new strategy includes several technical and regulatory pillars:
- Supporting Innovation: Launching programs to support new "candidate vaccine" projects and providing scientific consultancy to startups developing health technologies based on artificial intelligence.
- Testing Infrastructure: Establishing laboratories with international accreditation (ISO 15189, ISO 20387, ISO 27001) within the Aziz Sancar Research Center to ensure that local products meet global standards.
- Technology Transfer: Supporting technology transfer projects from the defense industry sector to the medical device sector, with priority given to dual-use technologies within TÜBİTAK support programs.
- Digital Transformation in Supply: Creating an integrated digital system for tracking and supplying medicines and medical supplies to health facilities managed by Turkey abroad, to ensure priority supply for local products.
Why Does This News Matter?
This trend represents a shift toward strengthening "supply security" in the Turkish health sector. Data indicates that locally produced medicines currently cover 92% of the market in terms of volume, but represent only 52.5% in terms of value, reflecting the market's need to focus on high-value-added medicines and biotechnologies. The government also aims to use public procurement as a leverage tool to accelerate the commercialization of innovative medical devices locally, which will reduce the trade gap in the medical device sector, which has recorded a deficit in the foreign trade balance.
The plans also include establishing a "Health Valley" and designing a "pilot acceleration program" model for startups in the biotechnology field, opening new horizons for technical innovation in this vital sector.