Could you please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about your company and the problem it’s trying to solve?
CanSino Biologics is a company dedicated to the research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of human health vaccines. The company is showing promising prospects with the development of its diversified portfolio of vaccines. This portfolio includes products that are already part of immunization programs worldwide, such as the meningococcal conjugate vaccine, the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccines. It also includes innovative products that address unmet medical needs, such as the recombinant pneumococcal protein vaccine and the inhaled tuberculosis vaccine. In addition, CanSino Biologics offers vaccines for rarer situations, such as the Ebola vaccine. Finally, the company has products suitable for pandemic management, such as the coronavirus vaccine, for which an innovative new presentation has been launched, consisting of an inhaled administration, the world’s first vaccine administered in this way.
In Switzerland, people are never shying away from work.
Could you explain why you decided to establish CanSino in Switzerland, and in Geneva in particular?
CanSino Biologics is a vaccine company that aims to expand its business internationally by providing quality vaccines at affordable prices. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to collaborate with international organizations such as the World Health Organization, GAVI (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization), and UNICEF. These organizations are based in Geneva, so it is important for CanSino Biologics to have a regional presence to facilitate growing relationships with these bodies as its vaccine portfolio develops.
How has the GGBa supported you?
Our establishment process has benefited from the assistance of the local economic promotion agency (Direction générale du développement économique, de la recherche et de l’innovation), and in particular, Shun Zhou at GGBa, who has played a key role in informing us, accompanying us, connecting us with the right people, and generally facilitating our process, both in terms of thinking about the location of our establishment and its implementation.
If you were to recommend Western Switzerland as a business location to other Chinese companies, what would you tell them?
For any Chinese company wishing to set up in Switzerland, particularly in the French-speaking region, I can only encourage them to do so. They will find in this region a favorable environment to establish their operations, with the possibility of recruiting highly qualified employees and a dynamic local economic fabric. Many Chinese companies already established here can testify to this. Moreover, I believe that Chinese companies would find a work ethic similar to that of China. In other words, in Switzerland, people are never shying away from work.
