Mayor Joines Launches Statewide Effort to Increase Biotech Jobs

Office of the Mayor - July 16, 2009
Contact: Mayor Allen Joines, 727-2058

Mayor Allen Joines has invited the mayors of 20 North Carolina cities to attend a meeting July 29 to craft a public policy agenda to strengthen the biotech and biopharmaceutical industries in their cities. The meeting will be held at the Piedmont Triad Research Park.

Speakers will include North Carolina Lt.Gov. Walter Dalton; Dr. Anthony Atala of the Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine; and Sam Taylor, the president of NCBIO (the North Carolina affiliate of the national Biotechnology Industry Organization).

The primary task of the mayors will be to develop a coordinated action plan to increase the number of biotech and biopharmaceutical jobs throughout the state.

"As chairman of the state Economic Development Board I recognize the need to not only attract new industry to our state, but also to focus on expanding our current industry base," Joines said. "The world economy is different now and North Carolina cities are competing with communities across the country and the world for the new jobs of the future."

"As I have worked to increase this industry sector presence in Winston-Salem, it has become clear to me how decisions made in Washington and Raleigh can have direct impact on these companies and ultimately on our community," Joines says. "We must be sure that our cities have all the tools necessary to be successful in competing for the jobs of the future."

Statewide, biotech and biopharmaceutical industries account for more than 180,000 jobs and have an economic impact of $45.8 billion. Winston-Salem has more than 60 bioscience companies providing more than 1,100 jobs and will be adding thousands more with the implementation of its new biotech strategy.