BIO Names Puerto Rico Gov. Aníbal Acevedo-Vilá "Governor of the Year"
"Gov. Acevedo-Vilá and his Administration have been champions of building a strong bioscience industry presence in Puerto Rico," said Patrick Kelly, BIO's vice president of state government relations. "Not only does Puerto Rico have the third largest biologic manufacturing capacity in the world, but the Commonwealth also has a significant agricultural industry presence. Gov. Acevedo-Vilá's Administration has been successful in creating an environment that will lead Puerto Rico into the forefront of the bioscience industry development well into the new millennium."
Of the numerous reasons cited in Gov. Acevedo-Vilá's nomination, several were clear signals to BIO's membership that the Governor and his Administration are indeed dedicated to the biotechnology industry and a worthy recipient of the award.
Among his recent achievements, Gov. Acevedo-Vilá's signed an Executive Order making the promotion and development of the biotechnology industry a public policy priority; instituted an inter-agency task force to address permitting issues for biotechnology companies on a fast-track basis; and, signed a proclamation creating the first annual biotechnology week.
BIO represents more than 1,100 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and 31 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products.
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