Hyderabad: Belgium’s expertise in life sciences, combined with India’s manufacturing capabilities, can transform global healthcare by fuelling innovation and ensuring wider accessibility to healthcare, Belgian Ambassador to India Didier Vanderhasselt said here on Tuesday.
Speaking at an Indo-Belgian life sciences conference conducted by the Belgian embassy along with members of the Belgian Life Sciences cluster, the Belgian envoy said Belgium has emerged as a global life sciences hub. It boasts an ecosystem of world-class universities and research institutions and is the second-largest exporter of pharmaceuticals in Europe, as well as a leading destination for clinical trials.
Telangana industries minister D Sridhar Babu highlighted the key contributions of Telangana’s life sciences sector to global healthcare.
Dr Reddy’s Labs Co-Chairman & Managing Director GV Prasad, who is also the Honorary Consul of Belgium, said the collaboration would be mutually beneficial. It would combine Belgium’s advanced R&D with India’s ability to scale, enabling the creation of affordable and sustainable healthcare innovations.
“Belgium has the highest per-capita patents in the world, and its companies can benefit from access to clinical specimens and other strengths that India offers,” Prasad added.
Over 200 researchers, policymakers, and industry leaders from India and Belgium deliberated on global healthcare challenges and the potential for collaborative opportunities at the day-long conference.