[Manbo Jeongdam] "The Importance of Yak Realized Through COVID-19... Let's Walk Together Toward Becoming a Pharmaceutical Powerhouse"

Noh Yeonhong, President of Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Association
Make Sure to Walk and Write Every Day

High Self-Sufficiency Rate of Finished Pharmaceuticals... Equipped with IT Technology and Data
Need for Workforce Development and Control Tower for 'Second Semiconductor'

Bangbae-dong, where the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association is located, boasts a unique landscape distinct from the forest of buildings in downtown Seoul. Next to the Pharmaceutical Hall, where the association is housed, stands Cheonggwonsa Shrine, dedicated to Prince Hyoryeong, the second son of King Taejong of Joseon and elder brother of King Sejong. Just behind it is the well-maintained Seoripul Park walking trail, lush with greenery. The Seoripul trail is famous as a "pleasant walking course" that connects all the way to the Express Bus Terminal. Since his inauguration in March, Chairman Noh Yeon-hong of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association has visited this place whenever he has time. Chairman Noh apologized first, saying, "I originally planned to do the interview in casual clothes, but I had many external appointments, so I wore a suit." He added, "Places with such good natural environments are rare in Seoul. Walking through Seoripul Park feels like walking in a forest."

Is this a comeback after 10 years... Fluent speaker reciting the latest statistics without hesitation

Chairman Noh commutes from his home in Pangyo. In the morning, he visits a fitness center to work up a sweat, and in the afternoon after work, he takes walks near his home. One of his greatest joys living with three generations of family is walking together with them. He mostly walks with his wife, and the recovery of her health through walking is his biggest gain. He said, "My wife had back problems, but she has improved a lot by walking consistently," adding, "She walks about 10,000 steps a day, and we try to keep it that way." He has a principle of playing golf only on Saturdays. When he plays rounds, he prefers to walk rather than ride a cart, which allows him to walk about 13,000 steps.

Noh Yeon-hong, Chairman of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association, is walking along a mountain trail in Seoripul Park near his office in Bangbae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

Along with walking, Chairman Noh makes sure to keep a daily 'writing' habit. He personally organizes the day's work and important matters in a work journal. Despite his busy schedule, this is a principle he has maintained throughout his career, which spans government, the presidential office, and academia. Even if the time is short, he reviews his daily work journal to reflect on what he has done and to think about what to do next. Chairman Noh explained, "Even on days when I am too busy with appointments or work to write, I try to write the next day. It is a way to note down things that need to be remembered."

Chairman Noh entered public service in 1983 by passing the 27th Administrative Examination. He then worked continuously at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, being on the front lines of health and medical policy. In 2010, he was appointed Commissioner of the Korea Food and Drug Administration, ushering in the current 'Osong era.' His nickname is the 'British Gentleman.' He studied at the University of York in the UK and was dispatched there for two years starting in 1996, forming a deep connection with the UK. The nickname also reflects his gentle work style and warm leadership. Throughout the one-hour walking interview and one-hour office interview, he spoke fluently without hesitation. It was hard to believe that he had returned to public service after a 10-year hiatus since finishing his role as Senior Secretary for Employment and Welfare at the Blue House in 2013. He was well versed not only in current issues of the pharmaceutical and bio industry but also in key statistics.

The pharmaceutical and bio industry has undergone many changes. The COVID-19 pandemic had a beginning and an end, bringing new opportunities and crises. Above all, with the Yoon Seok-yeol administration presenting a vision to nurture bio-health as the 'second semiconductor,' the association's role as a bridge between policy and industry has grown even more important. Chairman Noh seemed aware of this, saying, "I feel a heavy responsibility." Yet he also said, "When Korea first started semiconductors, there was no foundation, but now we are number one in the world. Our pharmaceutical and bio industry can definitely achieve that too."

Chairman Noh Yeon-hong of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association is walking along a mountain trail in Seoripul Park near his office in Bangbae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

"The second semiconductor? We can definitely do it"

If you were to name one industry leading Korea, it would undoubtedly be semiconductors. The semiconductor industry, built from scratch, has become the backbone supporting the Korean economy as a major export powerhouse. Now, a new source of growth must be found. The protagonist is the bio-health industry. The domestic pharmaceutical and bio industry market size was 25.4 trillion won in 2021, accounting for only 1.5% of the global market, but it has maintained an average annual growth rate of 25% over the past five years. The new drug pipeline has more than tripled in the last four years, and nearly 50 domestic products have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA), accelerating global expansion. While there are some who view the vision of becoming a 'top 5 global pharmaceutical and bio powerhouse' as overly optimistic, Chairman Noh is confident, saying, "It is possible." Although Korea is a latecomer globally, it has excellent human resources and infrastructure such as IT and data. "There is regret that new drug development has been slow due to the long 'death valley,' but with artificial intelligence (AI), costs and time can be reduced, and we have excellent data accumulated over decades through health insurance. Combining these strengths can accelerate progress significantly."

As the interview focused on bio-health, Chairman Noh brought up the word 'pharmaceutical.' He emphasized the need to dispel misunderstandings about Korea's pharmaceutical industry ecosystem. Although innovative new drug development has been relatively less compared to advanced countries, a solid industrial system for public health is already in place. As an example, he cited the self-sufficiency rate of finished pharmaceuticals. It once exceeded 80% but has dropped to 60.1% (2021). However, even Southeast Asian countries and pharmaceutical advanced countries like Australia do not reach this level. The U.S. and France, focusing on new drugs, tend to have weaker generic drug sectors.

Chairman Noh said, "During the COVID-19 crisis, Europe struggled due to a lack of basic medicines like cold medicine and antipyretics," adding, "We have a solid foundation that allows us to produce improved new drugs and innovative new drugs, creating a healthy ecosystem." While recognizing the value of new drugs is important, policies that effectively utilize this ecosystem to advance further are needed. In reality, the self-sufficiency rate of finished pharmaceuticals is declining. The rate for raw materials is 24.4% (2021), and vaccines are at 50.5% (14 out of 28 essential preventive vaccines developed and produced, 2021). Stable domestic supply of essential medicines and raw materials is necessary to secure pharmaceutical sovereignty, as proven by COVID-19. The association calls for financial support for maintaining stocks of essential and raw materials, building manufacturing facilities, and protecting drug prices. They hope essential medicine raw materials will be designated as national strategic technology, and general raw materials as new growth and core technology, with investment costs and tax credits expanded for related research and manufacturing facilities. They also want the preferential drug pricing period extended for finished pharmaceuticals produced using their own raw materials.

Chairman Noh Yeon-hong of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association is walking along a mountain trail in Seoripul Park near his office in Bangbae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

What are the 'key points' to lead pharmaceutical and bio growth?

Chairman Noh emphasized workforce development as a crucial task for fostering the pharmaceutical and bio industry. Since innovation requires both capital and talent, securing excellent human resources is indispensable. He said, "Recently, many bio ventures have emerged, and medical and pharmacy students are increasingly founding startups, unlike before. Efforts to build a solid talent pool, which forms the industry's foundation, are necessary." It is significant that Korea was designated by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a global bio workforce training hub. The association is continuously running programs such as the AI New Drug Support Center and GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) education.

It is encouraging that universities are actively involved in workforce development. Chairman Noh said, "Increasing enrollment in metropolitan universities was impossible until recently, but now 150 spots related to pharmaceutical and bio have been added," adding, "If efforts to train personnel for industry entry accompany this, the human resource gap can be filled quickly."

From a policy perspective, he stressed the need for a 'control tower' to oversee pharmaceutical and bio industry development. Currently, policies related to the pharmaceutical and bio industry are fragmented across multiple ministries. Basic research is under the Ministry of Science and ICT, intermediate research under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, industrialization under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and drug approval and clinical trials under the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Chairman Noh said, "While it is good that each ministry fulfills its duties, there is a lack of overall coordination," adding, "We cannot immediately catch up with big pharma in scale, technology, capital, and talent, but to follow and surpass them, we must move much faster."

With the current government announcing plans to establish a 'Digital and Biohealth Innovation Committee' under the Prime Minister's Office, the industry is hopeful. Chairman Noh said, "Now it is a race against time," adding, "Even 2027, the government's target year to create two blockbuster new drugs and produce three global top 50 pharmaceutical companies, is not far away. New drug development takes 10 years, but we have only reached halfway. We need to move faster." He added, "Together with 272 member companies, we will communicate continuously, think intensely, and strive through ongoing innovation and cooperation to achieve the goals of establishing pharmaceutical sovereignty and realizing a pharmaceutical powerhouse."

Chairman Noh also asked for public interest and support for the pharmaceutical and bio industry. He said, "Through COVID-19, medicine and health issues, once considered problems only for patients, have become issues for the entire nation and the world," adding, "To maintain basic life and increase happiness, pharmaceutical sovereignty must now be practically guaranteed." He also said, "Few countries produce 80% of their finished pharmaceuticals. Without this foundation, we would have to import all antipyretics for babies when they are sick. It is regrettable that our pharmaceutical industry has not advanced quickly with new drugs, but the system built so far is valuable," expressing warm encouragement for the domestic pharmaceutical and bio industry.

▶ Born 1955 ▶ Hankuk University of Foreign Studies ▶ Completed PhD coursework in Health Economics at University of York ▶ PhD in Public Health from CHA University ▶ Passed 27th Administrative Examination ▶ Director General of Health and Medical Policy at Ministry of Health and Welfare ▶ Commissioner of Korea Food and Drug Administration ▶ Senior Secretary for Employment and Welfare at the Blue House ▶ Vice President of Gachon University Medical Campus ▶ Chair of Drug Benefit Evaluation Committee at Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service ▶ Advisor at Kim & Chang Law Firm