The Egyptian medication market is affected by a scarcity of medicines, together with necessary remedy for power ailments and psychological diseases, in accordance to the Chairman of the Parliamentary Group of the Common Occasion within the Senate, Ihab Wahba.
The market is grappling with a important scarcity that extends to quite a few therapies for each power and non-chronic situations, corresponding to these for diabetes and hypertension, staples in numerous households.
Probably the most important cause for the scarcity, in accordance to Wahba, is a scarcity of international forex to import uncooked supplies for native manufacturing.
Transport delays, pricing, restricted availability of alternate options, and the general public’s hesitation to make use of substitutes—usually on account of issues in regards to the effectiveness of the lively substances or a powerful choice for following the physician’s unique prescription—have additionally worsened the issue.
Ali Auf, head of the Prescription drugs Division on the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, estimated in July that there are roughly 800 drugs at the moment unavailable within the Egyptian market.
Whereas the primary quarter of 2024, Egypt’s imports of prescribed drugs and medicinal preparations fell by 6.9 %, totaling USD 751.38 million (EGP 36.7 billion), a lower of USD 56.22 million (EGP 2.7 billion) in comparison with USD 807.6 million (EGP 39.4 billion) recorded throughout the identical interval in 2023, the market remains to be struggling.
Hisham Hajar, a board member of the Chamber of Trade of Cosmetics & Medical Provides, highlighted reliance on worldwide sources, stating that the pharmaceutical trade is extremely depending on imports for its uncooked supplies, sourcing roughly 95 % of those necessities, together with each lively substances introduced in instantly and inactive substances sometimes equipped by importers.
The scarcity of lively substances, important for drug manufacturing, is estimated to vary between 15 and 20 %, in accordance to Mohie Hafez, a member of the board of administrators of the Chamber of Trade for Cosmetics & Medical Provides.
Reformative Efforts
The federal government, beneath the management of Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbouly, has made medication a high precedence. It’s now aiming to make sure that important medicine and medical provides can be found within the Egyptian market, whereas additionally tackling the challenges of shortages and pricing within the native pharmaceutical trade.
At a press convention on 6 August, Minister Abdel Ghaffar assured that the present drug scarcity could be resolved inside three months.
To fulfill the issue head-on, the federal government will allocate EGP 7 billion (USD 143.4 million) to fulfill the scarcity of medicines and medical provides wanted by hospitals and pharmacies., Mohamed al-Homosany, the spokesperson for the Egyptian Cupboard, introduced on 9 August.
Moreover, on 11 August, Wahba introduced an in depth proposal aimed toward resolving Egypt’s persistent medication shortages. The plan, set to be introduced to the federal government, addresses the continuing disaster of drugs shortages within the Egyptian pharmaceutical market and descriptions the required technique to localize drug manufacturing in Egypt.
Recognizing the important function of prescribed drugs in each world and native contexts, Wahba’s proposal highlights the trade’s significance to nationwide safety and the well being of Egyptian residents. He acknowledged that Egypt’s pharmaceutical trade, which primarily serves the native market, should undertake a contemporary technique to realize larger self-reliance in remedy manufacturing.
This technique goals to successfully combine imported applied sciences with domestically developed options, to provide secure, efficient, and high-quality drugs at inexpensive costs. It additionally seeks to localize unconventional pharmaceutical manufacturing to cowl the Egyptian market with non-traditional medicine, which can assist cut back import prices and improve pharmaceutical exports.
Wahba additionally emphasised the strategic significance of drugs as a important commodity and the pharmaceutical trade as one among Egypt’s most important industries.
Prescription drugs in Egypt
In accordance with figures launched by the cupboard’s Data and Resolution Help Centre, the Egyptian pharmaceutical market is among the largest in Africa with annual gross sales amounting to roughly USD 7 billion (EGP 341.7 billion).
“Native manufacturing meets about 91 % of the market’s wants and exports to 80 international locations, making it an important nationwide trade,” Hafez famous.
Through the first 5 months of 2024, the pharmaceutical market has recorded gross sales of roughly EGP 73.3 billion (USD 1.5 billion), in comparison with EGP 51 billion (USD 1.05 billion) throughout the identical interval of 2023, in accordance to a latest report by IQVIA, a company devoted to monitoring pharmaceutical market gross sales.
Egypt’s exports of prescribed drugs and medical provides totaled round USD 432.2 million (EGP 21.1 billion) within the first quarter of 2024, based on Ali El-Ghamrawy, chairman of the Egyptian Drug Authority.
The nation is dwelling to 170 factories that collectively produce 4 billion drug packages yearly, assembly 91 % of the nation’s pharmaceutical wants, the Minister of Well being and Inhabitants, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar reported.
Egypt produces 92 % of its conventional medicines domestically and imports eight % of non-traditional medicines, corresponding to serums and most cancers therapies. In accordance to Wahba, importing this eight % prices USD 1.13 billion (EGP 55.1 billion), which accounts for 35 % of the nation’s complete medication expenditure.
The Prescription drugs market in Egypt is forecasted to realize a income of USD 1.54 billion (EGP 75.2 billion) in 2024, in accordance to Statista.
Regardless of present challenges, the efforts to revive Egypt’s pharmaceutical trade may create a extra resilient and self-sufficient healthcare system for the longer term.
