City of Turku Applies for the European Medicines Agency

​Due to Britain’s resignation from the European Union the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and The European Banking Authority (EBA) in London are to be relocated to other member states. Finnish EU Committee of Ministers decided on 3 March 3 2017 that Finland will be pursuing the relocation of Medicines Agency in Finland. Turku filed their application at the Department of Health and Human Services on 2 June 2017.

Finland has solid expertise in the medical industry, especially within fields that are vital in the future. Turku, in particular, has a strong rationale to be chosen as the Agency’s new location.

– Drug development in Turku is world-renowned. Almost half of the Finnish pharmaceutical industry’s turnover originates in companies operating in the Turku region. In addition to drug discovery, Turku has high-end expertise in disease determination diagnostics, describes Pekka Sundman, Director of the City Development Group in Turku.

Approximately half of the jobs in Finland’s drug and diagnostics sector are located in the Turku region. Additionally, Fimea – the Finnish Medicines Agency – has an office in Turku.

In the 1970’s, Turku was the major catalyst in Finnish proprietary drug development. Twenty out the total 21 of Finnish molecular entities launched in the market were developed by companies based in Turku.

Both the University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University have defined drug development and diagnostics as their strategic priorities.

– The Turku region’s versatile educational opportunities and multidisciplinarity ensure that there is highly educated workforce and expertise available for the Agency. In addition, the region offers great job opportunities and education also for the families of those employees who would move here from abroad, says Rector of the University of Turku Kalervo Väänänen.

>> Article on the City of Turku’s website

MR
Photo: Hanna Oksanen