Korea Drug Development Fund (KDDF) — New Drug R&D
Supports organizations through Korea Drug Development Fund New Drug Innovation, helping them build novel medicine programs.
The Korea Drug Development Fund (KDDF) supports Korean new-drug R&D from lead-candidate discovery through non-clinical and Phase 1/2 clinical development. Season 1 (2011–2020) funded 159 completed projects across oncology, CNS, cardiovascular, infectious, immunology, and metabolic indications, with academic and corporate awardees including Seoul National University, KAIST, Hanmi Pharmaceutical, SK Biopharmaceuticals, Yuhan, ABL Bio, and LegoChem Biosciences. KDDF operates as a government R&D consortium jointly funded by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Science and ICT, and Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The English pipeline portal is bilingual (Korean + English); call documents typically remain Korean-language. Successor seasons follow the same staged-pipeline model — applicants must specify target stage (Lead, Candidate, Non-Clinical, Phase 1, Phase 2).
Each grant below is a distinct funding opportunity with its own eligibility, scope, and deliverables.