Science Foundation Ireland, IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland are three agencies of the Department that contribute significantly to medicines research and development. This funding is guided by Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) being an essential component in a company’s ability to maintain a competitive edge in the market.
Companies and researchers that receive RDI grant support generate intellectual property and technical know-how in Ireland. Many of these RDI projects lead to manufacturing of new products, which further embed the companies in Ireland and, where relevant, increase the strategic importance of the Irish facility within the Global entity. This, in turn, contributes to the potential to increase employment in Ireland.
Information across the three agencies referenced above is not available in a format that allows for a definitive figure to be provided on "medicines research and development". However, the information provided below indicates that medical and pharma-related R&D forms a significant part of the R&D supported in each agency.
In 2017, IDA Ireland paid a total of €54,251,000 in RDI grants to its clients to undertake RDI across a variety of sectors, including Technology, Life Sciences, Medical Technologies and Engineering. Included in the above total is a figure of €13,900,000 which was paid to IDA Ireland clients in the pharma sector. Whilst some of this funding may be for drug research, it is not possible to confirm that all the funding is used exclusively for that purpose.
For the most part, Science Foundation Ireland does not ring-fence or pre-allocate funds for specific areas of research. SFI funds oriented basic research and applied research in all areas of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). All of the research funded by SFI undergoes rigorous international peer review. From time to time, the agency may run a competitive call in a defined research area where it has been identified that there is a specific gap in Ireland’s capabilities or an identified opportunity or challenge which Ireland can and should address.
In 2017, SFI invested over €33,720,000 in research related to medicines research and development. The awards cover areas directly, and more remotely, relevant to medicines research including drug/medicines discovery, but mostly synthesis, formulation, processing technologies, delivery. Significant awards in the medicine research and development areas include the SFI Research Centres, SSPC and CÚRAM.
The Synthesis and Solid State Pharmaceutical Centre (SSPC) SFI Research Centre led by University of Limerick, is a global hub of pharmaceutical process innovation and advanced manufacturing. SSPC leads the way for next generation drug manufacture and spans the entire pharmaceutical production chain from synthesis of the molecule, to the isolation of the material, and formulation of the medicine.
CÚRAM, SFI’s Research Centre led by National University of Ireland in Galway, aims to radically improve health outcomes for patients by developing ‘smart’ medical devices and implants. CÚRAM’s research programme focuses on innovative design, assessment and manufacture of medical devices and is driven by specialist researchers, clinicians and industry partners, ultimately translating research into clinical settings.
Finally, in 2017, Enterprise Ireland paid €5,000,000 in financial support to client companies to support medicine research and development. Enterprise Ireland also has a range of supports for collaborative projects with the Higher Education Sector. However, further analysis would be required to determine what share of this funding was allocated to medicines research and development.
