Diaz-Canel continues working agenda in St. Petersburg

HAVANA, Cuba, May 6 (ACN) Miguel Diaz-Canel, first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and president of the country, continues today his work agenda in St. Petersburg, with a visit to scientific centers linked to one of the strategic areas of the island: the biopharmaceutical industry.

According to the Cuban Presidency on X, the first item on the agenda was Biocad, which focuses its products on the treatment of autoimmune and rare oncological diseases, and its drugs are exported to more than 30 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Since 2019, Biocad, the Eurasian nation's largest biotechnology company, initiated collaborative relations with Cuba.

The report highlights that currently three of its products are registered on the island, and others are awaiting approval by the regulatory authority.

The head of state highlighted the similarity and complementarity between the evolution of Biocad and the development of BioCubaFarma.

He also referred to the consensus reached with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in which biotechnology is one of the fundamental pillars.

Diaz-Canel pointed out that this visit opens up new possibilities for cooperation.

He put forward the proposal to carry out co-developments between both leading institutions, and appointed Deputy Prime Minister Eduardo Martínez Díaz to directly attend to this link.

The President also visited Geropharm, one of the leading companies in the country in the production of different types of insulin and other products for the treatment of diabetes and obesity.

According to the report, the company has its own research center and carries out the complete development cycle of its drugs: from obtaining the molecule to registration.

The head of state toured the company's production plants, which meet the highest international standards.

In conversation with its executives, he praised the quality of the products and invited them to expand relations with the Cuban scientific center.

Diaz-Canel, leading a high-level Cuban delegation, arrived on Sunday in St. Petersburg, on an official visit, which will have as its main activity the participation in the parade for the 80th anniversary of the Victory of the then Soviet Union over Nazi Germany.

In St. Petersburg, the president plans to meet with local authorities and visit places of interest before continuing on to Moscow, where he will attend the aforementioned event on May 9.

The visit also coincides with the 65th anniversary of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between Cuba and Russia (May 8).
The high-level Cuban delegation also includes foreign minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla; Emilio Lozada Garcia, member of the Central Committee of the PCC and head of its international relations department, and the minister of foreign trade and investment, Oscar Perez-Oliva Fraga.