The Philippines is positioning clinical research and life sciences as a potential new high-value growth engine as the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) works with AstraZeneca to expand clinical trials and attract more health-related investments.
Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina Roque, during a visit to AstraZeneca’s global research and development hub in Cambridge, United Kingdom, discussed efforts to broaden clinical research in the Philippines and streamline regulatory approvals.
AstraZeneca has invested more than P3 billion in Philippine clinical trials over the past six years. The pharmaceutical company currently supports more than 28 ongoing and planned trials across over 150 sites, with more than 1,000 Filipino patients enrolled since 2022.
For the government, the expansion could bring higher-value employment for doctors, nurses, researchers and other health professionals while building capabilities across the healthcare system.
“Just as we built the IT-BPM industry from call centers into a globally competitive knowledge-services sector, we see clinical research and health information management as the Philippines’ next growth industry,” Roque said.
The DTI-AstraZeneca partnership is also expected to cover continuing medical education, diagnostics, digital health, and innovation in oncology, biopharmaceuticals and rare diseases.
AstraZeneca is working with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority, Department of Science and Technology and De La Salle University to establish a Clinical Trial Centre of Excellence in Manila within 2026.
The center is planned as the first of three pillars in a broader health ecosystem, alongside a Cancer Command Centre and a Cardio-Renal-Metabolic Centre.
DTI said it would coordinate with partner agencies to simplify approvals and explore a one-stop-shop model for health investments, as the country seeks to make clinical research more competitive regionally.
