China’s government is taking steps to ensure the long-term growth of its biotech sector. The State Council has adopted a plan to boost the development of seven strategic emerging industries as it considers ways to reverse the country’s economic slowdown, according to the government news agency Xinhua. China’s GDP grew just 8.1 percent in the first quarter of 2012, down from 9.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 and the slowest pace in almost three years.

“It is an important and strategic task to develop strategic emerging industries, particularly when the economy is facing increasing downward pressure,” said the council in a statement released after May 23 meeting headed by Premier Wen Jiabao. The meeting resulted in plans, not yet released, to launch 20 major projects in the seven strategic sectors, which include biotechnology, environmental protection, new and alternative energy, information technology, new materials, new-energy vehicles, and advanced equipment manufacturing.

Li Hong, head of medicine development at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology told China Daily that the 12th Five-Year Plan for the biotechnology industry may be implemented soon. The plan is focused on boosting new drug development, biomedical engineering, and modernizing traditional Chinese medicines, according to Li.

China Securities Journal, citing a source at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, says the biotechnology sector is set to hit $630 billion (4 billion yuan) by 2015, with pharmaceuticals contributing 90 percent of the total value. Biotechnology output came to about $236 billion (1.5 billion yuan) at the end of 2011 and is expected to increase 20 percent per year over the next four years.

The Chinese government is known to act swiftly when it makes a decision. Although the release date of the plan is still unknown, local industry expects that the government will back its decision when it is made official with both money and policy. As it stands, China’s 12th Five Year Plan ratified in March 2011 called for $300 billion to be invested in the biomedical sector between 2011 and 2015.