China is emerging as a source of biotechnology innovation alongside its role as an important market, while Hong Kong’s capital market, talent pool and academic links can help connect the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area’s innovation ecosystem with Merck’s global network, a senior executive said on Monday.

Rogier Janssens, president of Merck China and head of Life Science China, made the remarks in an interview with China Daily as the German science and technology company signed a collaboration agreement with Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) to establish the Merck Hong Kong Centre at HKSTP.

“We see the center of gravity of biotechnological advancements is moving eastward,” Janssens said, adding that the shift is driven largely by activity in China. Drug development, once heavily concentrated in Germany, Switzerland and Boston in the United States, is increasingly moving toward China, he added.

“China is not only an important end market, but also a source of innovation that we need to tap into,” he said. Describing China as a “hot area” for drug discovery, development, manufacturing and production scale-up, Janssens said Merck is a partner across that value chain.

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Janssens said Merck is deepening its presence in the Greater Bay Area’s innovation landscape. The company has recently established a laboratory and collaboration center in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, while the Merck Hong Kong Centre marks the first step of that commitment in the city.

Hong Kong’s first Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development (2026-30) was one of the inspirations behind Merck’s collaboration with HKSTP, with its emphasis on innovation and technology, including life and health technology, closely aligned with the company’s business sectors, Janssens said.

About 400 of the roughly 2,500 startups at HKSTP are focused on life sciences, drug development, and the broader healthcare ecosystem, Janssens added. The partnership will work “in both directions”, he said, bringing Merck’s products, expertise and global network closer to Hong Kong innovators while giving the company earlier insight into their scientific needs.

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The Merck Hong Kong Centre, to be located next to HKSTP’s shared biomedical laboratory, will serve as a dedicated physical facility for scientific product supply, technological demonstrations, and expert consultation.

Terry Wong Ping-sau, chief executive officer of HKSTP, said the Innovation Scouting Program, one of the initiatives under the collaboration agreement, will connect high-potential Hong Kong startups with opportunities for strategic investment, pilot projects and commercialization partnerships.

Contact the writer at charlottezhou@chinadailyhk.com