Korea to spend W10tr on drug development by 2017

The South Korean government will spend a combined 10 trillion won ($8.9 billion) on the project to develop 20 new drugs over the next five years in collaboration with private local drug makers, the Health Ministry said Sunday.

The government will also form a fund of 500 billion won to help the local pharmaceutical companies expand their presence in the global drug market by acquiring promising overseas drug makers during the same period, the ministry said.

The new drug development project aims to export 11 trillion won in drugs by 2017 and become one of the global top 10 pharmaceutical powerhouses, it said. (Yonhap News)