Italian drugs industry could be hit by shortage of researchers

Efforts by the drugs industry in italy to increase investment in research and development could be undermined by a shortage of qualified researchers.

Fewer than two jobs in a thousand in Italy are research posts, compared with the European average of almost four. There are only 60 PhD graduates for every million inhabitants in Italy, compared with 170 in France, 250 in the UK, 290 in Germany and 400 in Sweden.

Between 3% and 5% of Italians with degrees leave the country after graduating; only 2% of graduates in the country are from overseas.

Sergio Dompe, the head of the industry association Farmindustria, said that investments in r&d by drugs companies have increased by 20% since 2003, but the efforts could be undermined by the shortage of researchers. He said that Italy's reputation for high level research could also be put at risk.

Anna Maria Artoni, a vice president at the business association, Confindustria, said the country's ability to compete could suffer. "Italy is losing the battle for talent," she warned. "We need to be able to intercept and attract talent to Italy. There need to be incentives for doing research so that companies are able to remain competitive."

Novartis Vaccines, which has its global research centre in the Italian city of Siena, has had difficulties in recruiting researchers. At a meeting for its staff last week, one researcher complained to management about the increasing work pressure at the centre.

Ralf Clemens, head of global vaccines development, said the strain has been created by a shortage of researchers. "We are looking to recruit 40 people for research posts but it is not easy," he said. Competition for researchers in the vaccines field was strong because other groups, such as GSK, were also looking to hire internationally, he added.