Pharma sector can earn $ 1b in exports within five years

Pharmaceutical companies have the potential to earn $1 billion a year through exports in the next five years, but the sector needs fiscal benefits and policy support to do so, analysts said at a seminar.

Export earnings from the sector still remain below $100 million a year, but drug makers are optimistic about reaching the $1-billion mark as the industry is growing at 16 percent a year. A couple of local companies have also gained access to the highly regulated markets of the US and the UK.

Giving incentives on pharmaceutical exports and setting up a world class drug laboratory can lead the way, the analysts said at the event at Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka on Monday.

The platform organised the discussion on 'Bangladesh pharma industry: past, present and future' on the sidelines of its 46th annual general meeting.  Hassan was re-elected as president of the association. 

Drug testing is a costly matter and it is mandatory for exports, he added. “If we have a laboratory, we can test the drugs at low costs.”

Pharmaceutical exports grew around 25 percent in the last seven years. The amount stood at $60.19 million in the first eight months of this fiscal year, registering a 9.94 percent rise compared to the same period a year ago, according to data from Export Promotion Bureau.

The domestic market, which was worth $2 billion last year, meets 97 percent of the local demand.

The World Trade Organisation's extension of the medicine patent waiver is leading the development of a strong manufacturing base.

In November 2015, the WTO-TRIPS Council granted the least developed countries an exemption until 2033 from obligations to implement patents and data protection for pharmaceutical products.

There are some 257 registered pharmaceutical companies in Bangladesh, 194 of which are in operation. The industry manufactures about 5,600 brands of medicines in different dosage forms.

Square, Incepta, Beximco, Eskayef, Opsonin, Renata, ACI, Acme, Aristopharma and Drug International are the top pharmaceutical companies by market share.

SM Shafiuzzaman, who was re-elected as the secretary general of BAPI, said Bangladesh is now exporting drugs to 127 countries. “It will be a top exporting sector by 2033.”