Local production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), the main raw materials of drugs industry, has grown by 100 per cent over the last decade, creating new export market and a strong base of backward linkage for this sector, officials and industry leaders said.
According to Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA), in 2003 production of APIs was worth Tk 1.49 billion which rose to Tk 2.99 billion in 2013.
A senior DGDA official said though last year's full data are yet be compiled, there might have been more than 10 per cent growth over that of 2013.
He predicted some Tk 20 billion investments would be made for manufacturing APIs in the API Park within next five years.
Senior Vice President of Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceuticals Industries (BAPI) Momenul Haq said it has become inevitable to manufacture raw materials locally to be competitive in the growing export market.
He said a local manufacturing base for main raw materials is growing for this sector and currently more than 10 per cent of the total required APIs in the pharmaceuticals industry are being manufactured by several leading pharma companies.
Companies like Square, Beximco, Opsonin, Aristopharma and many others have already put considerable capital into manufacturing APIs.
The BAPI leader said raw materials of new generation drugs need to be less costly for being competitive both in local and export markets and local manufacturers are investing to produce such raw materials given the export potential.
DGDA Director Salim Barami said the local entrepreneurs have created a new export market for pharmaceutical raw materials and this is a 'milestone' for future expansion of this business.
He said raw materials export to 51 countries was worth Tk 87.32 million in the year 2003 and with almost a 100 per cent growth it reached Tk 160.56 million with exports to 87 countries in the year 2013.
He said the local base for manufacturing raw materials will give this sector a boost and thanks to the rising strong backward linkage, Bangladesh may be able to face the post-2015 situation despite expiry of the TRIPS (Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) deadline under the WTO (World Trade Organisation).
Mr Haq said establishment of a Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) in the API Park would encourage entrepreneurs to invest more in manufacturing raw materials.
He said BAPI has already sanctioned a Tk 800 million budget for setting up the CETP, which will be used once the park at Munshiganj, is commissioned.
He said Bangladesh will be able to produce more than 60 per cent of APIs locally within next 10 years.
himelshamsul@gmail.com
Local output of drug raw materials up 100pc in a decade
Shamsul Huda | Published: January 10, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2024 06:01:00
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