Bio’Occ Project Kick-Off Meeting

Winner in January 2023 of the AMI (Call for Expressions of Interest) project call-
CMA (Compétences et Métiers d’Avenir) in Biotherapies-Bioproduction, the University of Montpellier is a partner in the consortium that brings together training organizations (the University of Toulouse 3 (project leader), UM, INSA, the IMT training institute, GIP Training and Certification for Professional Integration), employers (GTP Bioways, Evotec, BioMed Alliance, the Eurobiomed Competitiveness Cluster, and INSERM), local authorities (Occitanie Pyrénées Méditerranée Region, Toulouse Métropole, Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole), and hospitals (Toulouse University Hospital, Montpellier University Hospital, CIC Biothérapie).

The objective of this project, "Biotherapy & Bioproduction in Occitanie " (Bio'Occ) is to inform, attract, train, and retain the talent and players of tomorrow to support innovation in the field of bioproduction and biotherapies in response to significant growth in this sector in Occitanie (and more broadly in France) and to the demand from manufacturers facing recruitment difficulties, both in terms of quantity and quality.

The Bio’Occ project is structured around four areas, which meet the objectives of the CMA AMI:
– adapting existing training courses: improving their relevance to needs by strengthening partnerships with industry and setting up teaching platforms;
– supplementing the existing training offer: meeting specific skills needs in initial and continuing training;
– Develop forecasting tools: better target changing needs and better adapt continuing education programs;
– Roll out communication initiatives: improve the attractiveness of professions and the social acceptability of biotherapies.

Steering committee for UM: Laila Gannoun, Thérèse Commes, Estelle Grousseau, Anne-Dominique Lajoix, John de Vos.