Growing numbers of bioscience jobs look set to be created on the east coast of the United States as businesses and universities look to plug a skills gap.

On the back of 18 months of research, the Rhode Island Bioscience Industry Skills Gap Taskforce, which was set up by the state's biotechnology industry association the Tech Collective, has stated that the region has the potential to become a major player in the global sciences field.

However, it noted that more needs to be done to train and recruit skilled engineers and scientists, particularly chemists, if the current shortage of qualified workers is to be effectively addressed.

Commenting on the new report, Tech Collective executive director Kathie Shields stated: "Rhode Island is well-suited for the biosciences; we just need to foster its needs as it takes a predominate place in our 21st century knowledge economy."

The report was supported by the University of Rhode Island Providence Biotechnology Center, which helps to train scientists to work in the burgeoning sector.

At the same time, Rhode Island has also been named as one of the top-ten most 'at risk' states in the US in a new report on the impact of the economic downturn published by the Pew Center.