Chongqing - Chongqing has expanded its medical device product portfolio to 6,137 items, ranking first among western Chinese regions, as the municipality accelerates efforts to build a stronger biopharmaceutical innovation ecosystem, local authorities said.
An innovative biopharmaceutical company, Genrix Bio, is located in the Banan District of Chongqing, southwest China. (Photo/Genrix Bio)
At the May 2026 work conference of the Yuyao Innovation Ecosystem, a platform led by the Chongqing Municipal Medical Products Administration, officials highlighted major progress in the city’s pharmaceutical and medical innovation sector. “Yuyao” refers to pharmaceutical and medical products made in Chongqing, with “Yu” serving as the city’s official Chinese abbreviation.
The conference reported that the ecosystem expanded to 192 member organizations in 2025. Among them, 104 key projects made substantive progress, while 38 products received market approval.
Launched in January 2024, the Yuyao Innovation Ecosystem serves as an innovation service platform connecting government, industry, universities, research institutions, and end users. It provides support across the full life cycle of pharmaceutical and medical product development, including research and development, clinical trials, registration, and production.
Huang Shibin, deputy director of the Chongqing Municipal Medical Products Administration, said the platform has helped concentrate advanced production factors around pharmaceutical innovation.
“Last year, 126 drugs and 46 Class III medical devices were approved for market launch in Chongqing,” Huang noted. In China, Class III medical devices represent the highest-risk category and are subject to the strictest regulatory review. Chongqing’s growth rate in Class III approvals exceeded the national average by seven percentage points, he added.
Since the start of China’s 14th Five-Year Plan (2021–2025), the city has doubled its approvals for drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics, with increases of 600 percent, 178.7 percent, and 385.5 percent, respectively.
Chongqing has also achieved breakthroughs in innovative drugs. The city secured approval for China’s first — and the world’s second — CAR-T cell therapy drug for treating leukemia in children and adolescents, marking its first approval in cell therapy innovation. Additionally, Chongqing became the first city in China and the only city globally to approve a botulinum toxin type A drug developed using genetically engineered recombinant technology.
To accelerate approvals, the municipal regulator introduced classified management, simplified procedures, and fast-track reviews. Approval times for drug supplementary applications have been reduced to as few as 26 working days, a decrease of nearly 90 percent. Average testing time for medical devices has been shortened by one-quarter, and 131 administrative and public service items can now be handled entirely online.
“This year, we will iterate and upgrade the Yuyao Innovation Ecosystem platform,” Huang said. He added that Chongqing will continue reforms to support early-stage innovation and provide full-cycle services spanning research, clinical trials, registration, and production.