“Pharmapolitics in Russia; making drugs and (re)building the nation”

Keywords: science, technology, politics, pharmaceutical innovation, Russian Federation

To many people engagements between science, technology and politics may seem improbable. Yet, this thesis explicates the linkages between science, technology and politics, using an example of pharmaceutical innovation in the Russian Federation. It describes and interprets how pharmaceutical innovation in Russia has become entangled with processes of (re)building the nation and (re)imagining its identity and future, merging into what I call ‘pharmapolitics’.  One important conclusion of this work is that without wide societal engagement enhanced state control does not necessarily result in a better alignment of pharmaceutical science and technology with public health and societal needs.