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Victorian Government's $55m commitment to biotechnology
Minister Rich-Phillips said the plan was part of the Victorian Coalition Government’s suite of technology strategies under Victoria’s Technology Plan for the Future, which reflects the Coalition’s new approach to supporting technology and its commitment to driving productivity growth.
“The statement sets forth the Coalition Government’s direction for Victorian biotechnology and the key role of biotechnology in contributing to a competitive, productive and growing Victorian economy,” Mr Rich-Phillips said.
“The biotechnology plan will support the sector in overcoming current and future challenges, while promoting biotechnology-enabled innovation more broadly across Victorian industry and generating opportunities from technology convergence.
“For the first time, the Government will establish a number of dedicated programs that will directly support the biotechnology sector and encourage the uptake of biotechnology,” Mr Rich-Phillips said.
The plan covers two action areas:
Capability Development – support to develop the necessary talent pool, capitalise on
our world-class R&D base, and pursue international trade and investment
opportunities; and
Biotech-enabled innovation – focusing on demand-driven product development,
uptake programs, demonstration projects and regulatory reform.
A key component of the biotechnology plan is a $15 million Health Market Validation Program (Health MVP) to encourage innovation in Victoria’s healthcare system.
The Health MVP is a competitive grants program that will leverage the power of governmentas- customer to support the development of innovative health technology solutions to identified problems facing Victoria’s health sector.
This program aims to support the growth of innovative small to medium enterprises in order to deliver economic benefits for Victoria such as increased jobs, exports, investment and productivity.
A Technology Trade and International Partnering Program will provide grants for Victorian companies to attend overseas biotechnology conferences and trade events.
Minister Rich-Phillips said biotechnology was a vitally important Victorian industry and an area of competitive advantage for the state.
“Biotechnology is one of the most transforming technologies of our time, with the potential to unlock solutions to global issues impacting on Australia today and the challenges of future generations,” Mr Rich-Phillips said.
“Our vision for the future is to bring together the transformative power of the major technology platforms – biotechnology, ICT and small technologies – to unleash greater innovation and wider economic benefits.
“It is this approach which will not only propel results for our biotechnology sector, but also enable growth, productivity and competitiveness in other industries,” Mr Rich-Phillips said.
For further information visit www.biotechnology.vic.gov.au
