Innovation, partnerships key to 'Healthy China'

A1 I first came to China as a student in 1987 and have been privileged to live and work in China in each of the last three decades. To witness the scale of development and achievement across the country, and in almost all aspects of life, is almost beyond comprehension.

Certainly, the reform and opening-up policy has been an important catalyst leading to China's unprecedented success that it has achieved to date.

The long-term development strategies pursued by the government and the overall stewardship of the government have been instrumental in China's great success.

A2 Novartis is committed to re-imagining medicine to improve and extend people's lives. Our name in Chinese－Nuo Hua－underscores our commitment to the Chinese people. "Nuo Hua" literally means commitment to China. Like many multinationals, Novartis benefited from China's reform and opening-up.

China has been on a path of developing an ecosystem that is increasingly conducive to innovation and scientific development. A focus on high-quality development and greater economic liberalization brings opportunities to our industry, underlined by accelerated regulatory reforms, enabling faster drug approvals and broadened market access.

Since 1987, Novartis has introduced more than 80 innovative drugs into China and aims to file an additional 50 new drug applications in China between 2020 and 2024. Without the wise reforms and strategic policies of the government, this would not be possible.

A3 As for the next stage of development, I am excited to see how this will evolve, and believe it will be a centennial predicated upon innovation. China is developing an ecosystem that is conducive to innovation and scientific development. Some of the most essential inventions or contributions to humankind originated in China, and I think with the steps that the government is taking now, the country will produce some of the most important future inventions and innovative contributions to society and humankind.

A4 The past several years have helped us realize that collaboration, dialogue and trust are fundamentally essential for humankind to progress together.

I hope that China can help lead the way to getting us back to pre-pandemic collaboration, cooperation and interaction－including non-quarantine travel. I believe China can and will play a leading role as we forge ahead. Steps that the government has taken to develop a strong ecosystem that increasingly supports innovation are already resulting in the emergence of Chinese innovators across virtually all sectors of the economy, including biopharmaceuticals and digital. At Novartis, we are excited by the prospects of working collaboratively with Chinese partners to facilitate drug discovery and development, expand access to medicines and explore innovative healthcare solutions for patients.

A5 Innovators can only survive and thrive in an innovation-friendly ecosystem. In the pharmaceutical sector, the external environment for innovative drugs has never been more supportive. I believe that stronger IP and regulatory data protections will help bolster such an environment, enabling companies including Novartis to bring innovative drugs to China even faster and synergize the timelines of new product launches in China and globally.