Media reports indicate that the Taiwanese government will soon unveil a new 'biotech takeoff plan'.

According to the Taiwan Economic News, the proposal would create a 'mega' NT$60 billion biotech VC fund to double the island's annual biotech output to NT$300 billion over a four year period.

The Executive Yuan (cabinet) will likely contribute up to 40 per cent of the fund's total holdings, with the private sector providing the remaining capital. Private-sector partners are also slated to manage an investment evaluation team for selecting investment targets, both in Taiwan and abroad.

In addition, the new initiative envisions the establishment of a national biotech incubation centre, an increased role for the Biotechnology Development Centre and the creation of a medicine selection committee. As such, the Centre will expand its workforce from 400 to at least 1,000, while the biotech incubation centre is likely to introduce indigenous technologies to Chupei or Nankang bio-medicine parks.

The nascent medicine selection committee will include domestic and overseas experts responsible for assigning bio-medicine research projects to various academic institutions.

As IT Examiner previously reported, Taiwanese premier Liu Chao-shiuan recently announced that Taipei was committed to supporting its energy, telecommunications and biotech sectors, which are projected to earn revenue S$36 billion, $45 billion and $19 billion by 2015. The government has also allocated money for the telecommunications industry, which will be used to fund various projects, including wireless broadband, Wimax, fibre-to-home, fourth-generation mobile, on-board communications and surveillance communications. X

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