Indonesia-China Healthcare and Biotech Investment Forum Holds in Jakarta Successfully

On 29 January 2024, the Indonesia-China Healthcare and Biotech Investment Forum was successfully held in Jakarta. The forum was jointly organized by the Indonesian Ministry of Health (MOH), the Indonesian Food and Drug Authority (BPOM), and Legend Capital. The event attracted nearly 50 delegates from 25+ renowned Chinese companies, operating in various sectors including vaccines, biomedicine, medical devices, IVD, professional services, digital healthcare, and investment institutions. It was also attended by almost 50 representatives from 30+ Indonesian medical companies, with the total number of participants exceeding 100.

The forum facilitated extensive exchanges between Chinese and Indonesian companies. Chinese company representatives expressed their intentions to establish a significant presence in the Indonesian market, interact deeply with local partners, and establish marketing centers or production bases. They aim to make long-term investments and hope to leverage Indonesia as a key foothold for expansion into Southeast Asia. Indonesian company representatives also expressed eagerness to collaborate with Chinese companies possessing core technologies to serve nearly 280 million Indonesian people.

The Indonesian market is the best breakthrough for Chinese healthcare companies to enter the Southeast Asia market

On 27 July 2023, on the eve of the Chengdu 2021 FISU World University Games, the Minister of Health Indonesia, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, accompanied Indonesian President Joko Widodo on a visit to China. The Indonesia-China Healthcare and Biotech Investment Forum, co-hosted by the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in China and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Bilateral Committee for China (KIKT), and supported by Legend Capital and Indonesia Chamber of Commerce in China (INACHAM), was successfully held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Chengdu. Participants deliberated on the direction and opportunities for the development of healthcare and biotech in China and Indonesia.

Six months later, warmly invited by MOH and BPOM, under the guidance of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Republic of Indonesia, and with the support of Legend Capital, many enterprises were presented at this forum. There are Chinese biotech companies such as BeiGene, Brilliant Pharmaceuticals, CanSinoBIO, CSPC, Life Biosciences, Recbio, SINOVAC, and Tigermed, as well as medical device and technology service companies such as Bondent, GAREA, GensKey, Lepu Medical, MicroTech Medical, Mid-Link, PINS Medical, PureID, Reliable Med, Sansure Biotech, United Imaging and WEGO. There are also digital healthcare enterprises, such as Liangyihui, and Leapstack, as well as investment institutions such as IFC, Temasek, and Legend Capital. They formed a Chinese healthcare and biotech delegation and visited Indonesia and attended the forum to discuss the direction and opportunities for the development of healthcare and biotech in China and Indonesia.

This marked the second successful hosting of the Indonesia-China Healthcare and Biotech Investment Forum.

The forum was opened with speeches by Ms. Lucia Rizka Andalusia, Director General of Pharmaceuticals and Health Devices at the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia, and Mr. Jafar WANG, Co-Chief Investment Officer of Legend Capital. Mr. Jafar WANG summarized the expectation of cooperation with Indonesia with three key words: Wider range, Openness, and Win-win. He pointed out that deepening cooperation in medical devices, innovative pharmaceuticals, clinical CROs and digital healthcare services is foreseeable. By promoting the openness of Sino-Indonesian joint ventures in Indonesia, a win-win result will be created. He expects that with the efforts of MOH, BPOM, medical enterprises, and investment institutions, more Chinese medical enterprises and investment institutions will invest and develop in Indonesia, so as to combine innovative technologies, advanced concepts, and China’s experience with Indonesia's national conditions, promoting the healthy development of Indonesia's healthcare.

The Minister of Health Indonesia, Mr. Budi Gunadi Sadikin, delivered the keynote speech on "Healthcare Policy and Planning in Indonesia". He systematically sorted out and discussed the overall health system in Indonesia from various perspectives, such as the current situation of Indonesian healthcare, the number and capabilities of medical personnel, the distribution of medical resources, and the coverage of universal health insurance. He indicated that the Indonesian healthcare system is under transformation, hoping to establish a comprehensive nationwide disease prevention and control monitoring network, improving the level of primary healthcare services in Indonesia, training medical professionals and medical staff, making rational use of funds from all parties and optimizing resource allocation. He expressed his hope that deep cooperation with Chinese medical companies would facilitate the transformation and upgrade of Indonesia's healthcare system.

Subsequently, Ms. Jona Widhagdo Putri, Special Advisor to the Minister of the Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Investment, and Vice Secretary General of the China-Indonesia High-Level Dialogue Cooperation Mechanism, also addressed the forum. She emphasized that on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Indonesia and China, the two countries will continue to work together towards mutual respect, mutual learning, and mutually beneficial cooperation. Currently, the two countries have good cooperation in photovoltaic and infrastructure, and hope to have in-depth cooperation in the biopharmaceutical and medical device fields as well.

Deep penetration into the Indonesian market with a focus on localization

Serving 280 million Indonesian people, radiating the development to Southeast Asia

Under the witness of the Indonesian Minister of Health and relevant government officials, a signing ceremony was held between Chinese and Indonesian companies. Chinese companies, including Sansure Biotech, BeiGene, together with Indonesian companies such as Esora Medika, Etana, reached partnership agreements, jointly supporting the coordinated development of the healthcare fields in China and Indonesia.

Mr. Frank HONG, Managing Director of Legend Capital, delivered a speech on "Trends in Investment and Industrial Cooperation in Indonesia", summarizing the development of Chinese medical enterprises in the past two decades, especially the outstanding performance of Chinese biotech in the global market in 2023. He also distilled four major driving factors, namely the continuous expansion of medical insurance coverage, the encouragement of innovation by the registration review, the rapid growth of startups, and the strong support from venture capital, which may serve as lessons for Indonesia's healthcare industry.

Dr. DAI Lizhong, founder and CEO of Sansure Biotech, gave a keynote speech on "Building a Health Community - Sansure Program" and analyzed from multiple perspectives that "comprehensive health management" must be the general trend of global health management. He also shared that the practical experience of Sansure Biotech in establishing a health community in China, emphasizing Sansure Biotech will actively cooperate with multiple parties to jointly explore the future development trend of the global molecular diagnostics industry and continue to build a global community of health for all. 

During the roundtable discussion, Mr. QI Fei, Executive Director of Legend Capital, presided over the panel discussion of "Attempts for Chinese and Indonesian Company Collaborating in the Field of Pharmaceuticals and Vaccines". Chinese companies BeiGene, Tigermed, and CSPC Pharmaceutical Group, and Indonesian companies Kimia Farma, Biotis Pharmaceuticals, and Kalbe Genexine Biologics (KGBio) participated in the discussion. They shared and discussed the opportunities and challenges faced by Indonesia's drug management system, GMP production, new drug development, drug sales, and marketing, and seeking partners, hoping that Chinese medical enterprises can carry out broader and deeper cooperation with Indonesia and Southeast Asian countries, to benefit more countries and people.

The second roundtable discussion was hosted by Mr. Bonanza Taihitu, Deputy Director of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. He chaired a discussion on " Unlocking the potential of Indonesia’s medical device and diagnostics collaboration". Chinese companies Sansure Biotech and WEGO and Indonesian companies Nicosh Indo Medical, Labio Sistem Manufaktur, Sinko Prima Alloy, as well as IFC, also participated in the discussion. They shared and discussed various topics such as the current status of medical devices and diagnostic products in Indonesia, R&D, manufacturing standards, regulation, and establishing partnerships. They pointed out that cross-border inter-regional cooperation in both the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors faces three major challenges: approval time, labor shortages, and logistics. It was agreed that Indonesia's healthcare system would be rapidly transformed and upgraded with close international cooperation, following the path of China's 20 years of rapid development.

In addition, MOH and BPOM shared the registration regulations and access supervision of drugs and medical devices. Subsequently, Chinese and Indonesian companies enjoyed a networking session. Representatives of Chinese companies participating in the conference expressed that they will actively expand into the Indonesian market, interact deeply with local partners, establish marketing centers or production bases, and continue to invest in long-term efforts, hoping to establish core bases in Indonesia for Chinese companies to presence in Southeast Asia. Representatives of Indonesian companies also looked forward to cooperating with Chinese companies with core technologies to serve nearly 280 million Indonesian people. A two-day company visit followed the forum.