At this week’s Partnering for Global  Health Forum, sponsored by BIO and BioVentures for Global Health, in Washington, DC, a unique panel of government leaders from emerging markets discussed what it takes to do business in their countries. Among the panelists were: Argentina’s Lino Barañao, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovative Production; India’s T. Madham Mohan, the Ministry of Science and Technology Biotechnology Department Advisor; South Africa’s Bongi Gumede, Senior General Manager, Technology Innovation and Marketing, Technology Innovation Agency; and Brazil’s Julio Ramundo, Managing Director, Venture Capital, Environmental and Capital Markets Division, Brazilian Development Bank. Also on the panel to provide analysis and perspective was industry expert Steven Burrill, CEO of Burrill & Company.

A few common themes came out of the discussion including a focus on innovation and collaboration. And session moderator David Campbell of IMS Health—a key analyst in IMS’ list of “pharmerging markets”–pointed out that despite any differences among national global health and manufacturing strategies, it is clear that every nation desires healthcare for all.

Individually, Argentina’s Baranao noted that his government will be investing a lot more in healthcare and diagnostics during the next three to five years. He suggested that one of Argentina’s strengths is its regional market power and noted that other countries may want to start looking at regions versus countries for future R&D, trade, and so forth. He also noted that Argentina’s aging population will provide opportunity for healthcare and bio/pharma, and that Argentina’s ethnic similarities to Europeans should be considered in future drug discovery and R&D trials.

Brazil’s Ramundo said that his country—one of the BRIC nations and a growing leader in pharma manufacturing—intends to continue to grow. Its northern region, in fact, is growing at the same pace as most of China.  Brazil’s government plans to  move 16 million people out of poverty and into the healthcare system over the next 10 years, a move that will provide great opportunity—as well as challenges—for the healthcare and drug sectors. He noted that pricing and segmentation will be of interest. He also pointed out that Brazil’s current regulatory system, stable budget, and healthcare policies are likely to  help the country in these endeavors.

India’s Mohan said that his country has had a strong biotech strategy for several years and will be taking a more international approach in the next few years. Part of its near-term strategy will involve looking into biosimilars as an area of growth. India’s population is growing quickly and opportunities for healthcare and pharmaceuticals will grow with it, he noted.

South Africa’s Gumede pointed out that South Africa, as a port and trade starting point, is the gateway to many African countries and that nations elsewhere should consider this as they strategize to enter the African market. He noted the advantages of the new trade bloc getting underway throughout most of the entire African continent that will bring together the existing Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community (EAC), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Burrill provided a few predictions of his own for the future of the biotech, pharma, and global healthcare sectors. He noted that “cellphonology” will be of particular interest as cell phones are used more and more as diagnostic tools, and that the world will need to think of how healthcare is managed and delivered in a whole new way. As an example of how much things may change in the next 10 years, he pointed out that Google is less than 10 years old and that this single technology has changed forever the way people work and interact. Similar developments and technologies that we cannot even envision are likely to come at a rapid pace in the near future, he said. As new diagnostics, treatments, and cures are discovered, he noted that the future of healthcare may very well be less about treating sick populations and more about keeping healthy populations well. In other words, healthcare targets will be less about acute care and more about chronic care and prevention, he said. This is especially true as noncommunicable chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and cancer grow in developing nations like China.

Looking further ahead, Burrill noted that the big pharma companies of today are likely to be replaced  by companies that are just starting—or will soon be established—in the emerging markets of the world. He went on to say that the Internet and connect-ability will change the nature of competition and that new capital structures to build different kinds of companies and countries will exist. He also asked the audience to keep in mind two growing powers: consumerism and brand value. These powers will be of surprising importance in the future according to Burrill.

Finally, the growing occurrence of South-South trade (i.e., trade between nations in the southern hemisphere, such as India and Brazil) will need to be considered as North American and European countries and companies plan their market strategies.