Life Sciences
The Life Sciences Industry plays a strategic role within the Italian economy. Italy is globally recognised as a leading competitive hub in Europe and globally for investments in pharmaceuticals, medical devices, biotechnology, and healthcare. This competitive edge arises from Italy's well-established multinational corporations, a world-class research ecosystem and strong synergies among its numerous innovation players.
1ˢᵗ and 2ⁿᵈ in the EU
By number of companies in the medical devices and pharmaceuticals industry, respectively.
Italy boasts a long-standing tradition of hosting a considerable number of global leaders in the Life Sciences sector supported by a robust and resilient value chain comprising both domestic and international enterprises.
Source: Eurostat (2022).
1ˢᵗ in Europe by pharma CDMO manufacturing value
The Italian Life Sciences industry leads Europe in the number of Contract Development Manufacturing Organisations manufacturing domestically with a total output of 3.1 billion euros and amounting to 23% of the EU's total.
Source: Farmindustria (2022).
+87% Medical & Pharma export growth
Export growth in the last five years has been the highest of the major EU economies.
The Italian pharmaceutical industry is highly export-oriented with an export-to-production ratio of 90% and a total export value of 46 billion euros, emphasizing the remarkable attractiveness of Italian-manufactured pharmaceuticals.
Source: Eurostat (2018-2022).
€ 33 BLN of R&D investments in the pharma and medical devices industries
Italy offers a first-class R&D environment in the field of Life Sciences, driven by dedicated researchers and innovation players. The country is at the forefront of groundbreaking research in numerous therapeutic areas, including Oncology, Neurosciences, and Infectious Diseases.
Source: Farmindustria (2022).
Italy offers a rich ground for international investors in various segments of the life sciences sector and is committed to support different types of investors and projects
By becoming part of the Italian healthcare cluster, foreign companies can integrate into a broad and deep ecosystem, including MNEs such as Sanofi, Novartis, Takeda, Eli Lilly, Merck, Bayer, GlaxoSmithKline, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Pfizer, and Catalent.
