Governing stem cell science in China and India: emerging economies and the global politics of innovation

Stem cell science is a volatile political arena. Propelled by the scientific and economic promise of important new health technologies, stem cell science has produced politicisation across the international, regional and national policy domains. Concerned lest they should lose an important opportunity, the emerging economies of China and India are introducing policies designed to improve their global competitive position in this field. Given that their science, tax regimes, regulation, supporting industries and financial markets are at a different stage of evolution to that of the developed economies, China and India bring their own unique characteristics to the fluid politics of stem cell globalisation. This paper analyses their approaches to innovation in stem cell science and their distinctive contribution to the dynamics of the global political competition.