Problems Faced By Singapore Entrepreneurs In The Field Of Biotechnology

Biotechnology is one of the fields highlighted by the Economic Committee as an area of high value-added technology which could be developed in Singapore. The recommendation of the Economic Committee was that the venture capital industry be developed to aid in attracting young foreign technological firms to Singapore. Biotechnology includes the areas of pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food processing and agro-technology.A number of local biotechnology businesses have sprung up. This is an interesting phenomenon since biotechnology is difficult ground for small firms to be engaged in. It is usually associated with a long lag time between the development and the actual introduction of the product into the market-place, a need for large sums to be invested in research, and a short product life span, amongst other disadvantages.In an environment where enterprise is only currently being encouraged and entrepreneurship being nurtured, one would not have expected local entrepreneurs to venture into biotechnology. It would therefore be of interest to examine these businesses to see if there are any unique problems that they face by operating in Singapore.This paper proposes to examine the problems encountered by these local firms. Some of the problems ascertained through interviews with local firms concern financing and government funding, and availability of trained staff.