Session Presentation at the 57th Korea-Japan Business Meeting
"Great Achievements Possible by Combining Korea and Japan's Strengths"
Kim Minyoung, CEO of Dong-A Socio Holdings, proposed research and development (R&D) cooperation in the pharmaceutical and bio sectors between Korea and Japan during a session presentation at the 57th Korea-Japan Business Meeting held at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul on May 28.
Kim stated, "China and India are rapidly advancing not only in the field of active pharmaceutical ingredients but also in R&D," and diagnosed, "Currently, when China conducts clinical trials, the United States or Europe commercializes the products, so it seems that Korea and Japan are caught in the middle."
She added, "In the past, Korea has been recognized as a market for selling products or as a production base for pharmaceuticals of slightly higher quality than those from India or China, but going forward, we need to expand the direction of cooperation between Korea and Japan to include R&D."
In particular, mentioning Korea's 'ppalli-ppalli' (fast-paced) culture and Japan's experience in new drug development, she emphasized, "If these strengths are well combined and R&D cooperation is achieved, we can produce significant results."
On the Japanese side, the need for simplifying entry procedures and cooperation in startup investment was raised.
Katsuyasu Goto, Executive Officer of All Nippon Airways, said, "We need to promote Korea-Japan exchanges centered on tourism," and added, "I hope the joint statement of the Korea-Japan Business Meeting will include content on expanding exchanges through the simplification of entry procedures."
Tomohiro Takashima, Director of the Japan External Trade Organization, said, "For Japan and Korea, fostering startups is essential to achieving economic growth and addressing social issues, including youth unemployment," and requested, "I ask the executives of large corporations in both countries to take concrete actions from the perspective of nurturing startups."
This session presentation was part of the Korea-Japan Business Meeting, which is being held over two days starting May 27. The Korea-Japan Business Meeting is a representative annual exchange event between business leaders of the two countries. This year, marking the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan, a new Korea-Japan Partnership Joint Declaration is scheduled to be announced.
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