India-Queensland Ties in Focus at BioAsia 2026
The Queensland Government’s trade agency Trade and Investment Queensland (TIQ) will lead a delegation of 17 companies to BioAsia 2026 in Hyderabad, marking its third consecutive year at Asia’s largest life sciences conference.
The delegation underlines Queensland’s growing engagement with India’s life sciences ecosystem and its commitment to strengthening bilateral partnerships in biotechnology, clinical research, medical devices, digital health and AI-led health innovation.
The synergies between India and Queensland reflect a dynamic global supply chain and innovation environment; players are adapting their strategies in line with the changing environment under the ‘China Plus One’ model. In doing so, India has moved from being primarily a market for Australia’s export-led strategies to becoming an indispensable co-creator in life sciences and biotechnology.
India serves as a strategic hub for global trials, contributing over 4% of global volume with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8% from 2025 to 2030, and offers large, diverse, treatment-naïve populations. Both countries are important APAC regions; Australia is generally preferred for early-stage, faster recruitment and India for cost-effective, large-scale trials. India’s rise in clinical research further highlights this shift.
By 2024, India has emerged as the world’s third largest clinical trial destination, with an estimated 18,000 new clinical trial registrations, a 50% increase over the previous year. With a total of 3,200 new clinical trials in 2025, Australia has cemented its position as the global leader in Phase 1 research, paving the way for many Indian companies looking to find a reliable innovation partner.
Speaking about India’s role in Queensland’s life sciences and innovation ecosystem, Abhinav Bhatia, Queensland’s Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner, South Asia, Trade and Investment, said: “India is rapidly transitioning from being a volume-focused manufacturer of generic drugs to a sophisticated producer of complex molecules and multi-step chemical processes. As this journey gathers momentum, engagement with Queensland is a logical next step. Queensland’s research capabilities, mature clinical trial environment and innovation ecosystem are a symbiotic fit for this process. India’s capabilities and manufacturing prowess.”
These growing linkages are consistent with the general trend of Australia-India cooperation in the field of economic cooperation, particularly with the signing of the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA), and have also provided an enabling environment for mutual investment, research cooperation and technological cooperation between Australia and India in high-value sectors such as healthcare and life sciences. This relationship with India is also complemented by on-the-ground activities of several Queensland companies currently operating in India, contributing to investment and job creation in high-value sectors such as diagnostics, biological services and health testing.
Highlighting the overall Australia-India relationship, Austrade Trade and Investment Commissioner Mary Overington said: “Australia and India share a strategic partnership that has grown stronger in science, innovation and advanced manufacturing. ECTA has further strengthened this partnership by facilitating smoother investment flows and deeper corporate partnerships. The life sciences and healthcare conjuncture is one where we are prioritizing our collaboration to leverage Australia’s regulatory and research excellence with India’s scale and innovation.” power.”
The Queensland delegation includes leaders from research organisations, universities, clinical research organizations and life sciences companies. During its visit to India, the Queensland delegation will collaborate with stakeholders in India in the following areas:
– Clinical trials and translational research
– Advanced therapeutics and biologics
– Medtech and digital health
– Artificial intelligence-driven health solutions
Queensland Trade and Investment aims to further strengthen connections between Queensland and India by supporting meaningful interaction between researchers, innovators and industry leaders through BioAsia 2026. The visit builds on growing collaboration between Queensland and India in the life sciences and healthcare sector. This aligns with both regions’ commitment to improving healthcare outcomes through shared expertise, innovation and industry partnerships.
