B.C. provides $195M in grant funding for life sciences groups

VICTORIA — The B.C. government has provided $195 million in grant funding for two health research groups as part of a promise in the recent budget to support the life sciences sector.

Jobs Minister Ravi Kahlon says $116 million will go to Michael Smith Health Research BC and Genome BC will get the remainder to spur innovation.

Kahlon says the province is home to the fastest-growing life sciences sector in Canada and the funding is aimed at attracting and retaining top researchers.

He says virtually every COVID-19 vaccine that reached late-stage development in 2020 was developed or manufactured in B.C., and the province wants to leverage that contribution towards learning how to deal with future pandemics.