Hot on the heels of the Air France-KLM flight hub at Fortaleza International Airport and the import-export hub at Pecem Port comes the latest investment in Ceará. The state is developing two high-tech health hubs bringing new research and development (R&D) resources, highly qualified personnel and big investment to the state.
Announced formally in February, the two health hubs are located in or near the state capital Fortaleza. One lies in the centre of the city at Porangabussu and the other to the south in Eusebio. Both offer cutting-edge technology from the best in their field and will add considerably to the international appeal of investment in Ceará.
Health Innovation District
The latest development to be announced by the state authorities is the Health Innovation District (Distrito de Inovaçao em Saude in Brazilian) set to be located at Porangabussu, just south of the city centre. The area has been chosen for its development possibilities and proximity to Fortaleza University.
The ambitious health hub forms part of the Plan Fortaleza 2040 urban development plan and will integrate public facilities and private spaces. Porangabussu is already home to several hospitals and health centres as well as the medical departments at the university.
The Health Innovation District will transform the area, both socially and economically. Major development plans have been announced including the construction of residential and leisure areas alongside buildings to house cutting-edge medical research. The overall aim of the health hub is to bring medical investment to Ceará along with highly qualified staff.
Industrial and Technological Health Hub
The second health hub in Ceará began in mid-2017 and the ambitious project has already proved beneficial for the state as a whole. Several key companies have shown interest in this aspect of investment in Ceará and others are already on board.
The Polo Industrial e Tecnológica da Saude (PITS) is located at Eusebio, just outside the city of Fortaleza in the south. Investment in a hospital complex with state-of-the-art medical R&D resources runs to R$4.5 billion.
The hub will take industrial innovation as its focus and several world-class players in medical R&D are committed to the site. The Brazilian company Fiocruz, specialised in vaccine research and development signed its agreement last August. Nuteral, specialists in biotechnology for nutrition, Point Suture (R&D into stitches) and the prestigious Institut Pasteur will also form part of the association of companies operating at PITS.
Investment in Ceará on international science stage
This industrial and technological health hub forms part of the worldwide International Association of Science Parks (IASP), made up of 70 city districts around the world with a pool of international businesses making investment. Among them are corporate giants such as Amazon, Google, IBM, Philips and Siemens.
As part of the IASP network, Ceará will have access to this investment pool, enhancing both the state’s profile on the international investment stage and job opportunities for qualified medical research staff.
(Source: Ceará government, O Povo newspaper)
