Establishment of Observatory for Pharmaceutical Industry in Belgium
- 11/06/2018
- Articles
Today’s Belgian Official Journal (Belgisch Staatsblad/Moniteur belge) has published the Royal Decree of 25 May 2018 establishing an observatory for the pharmaceutical industry (Koninklijk Besluit van 25 mei 2018 houdende oprichting van een Observatorium voor de farmaceutische industrie/Arrêté royal du 25 mai 2018 portant création d'un Observatoire du secteur pharmaceutique).
The observatory will be created within the Federal Public Service for the Economy, SMEs, Self-Employed and Energy and will comprise 16 members with different backgrounds, including four representatives of the pharmaceutical sector. Its mission will be to monitor, at least every two years, the international competitiveness of the Belgian pharmaceutical sector and to formulate policy recommendations to maintain and improve competitiveness. The findings and recommendations of the observatory will be tabled with the Federal Council of Ministers by the Minister of Economic Affairs.
While the objectives of the observatory are laudable, the proof of the pudding will be in the eating. To improve the competitive position of the Belgian pharmaceutical sector, support is needed in a wide range of fields, including pricing and reimbursement, clinical trials, R&D, taxation, employment law, education, energy, etc. As the competence for many of these fields is fragmented and spread across a number of Ministers and governmental layers, including at the European level, the observatory’s mission will succeed only if everyone involved works towards the same goal.
