Dr. Ali Al-Ghamrawy, chairman of the Drug Authority, confirmed that the Egyptian State supports the provision of pharmaceutical needs to the Egyptian patient according to the directives of the political leadership as a priority, confirming that the Egyptian medication has the highest quality standards that ensure its effectiveness and safety for the patient
During a press conference held on the 11th of June at the Authority's headquarters in Mansouria, Dr Ali El Ghamrawy said: ‘The state supports investments and provide the appropriate climate that supports the localization of the pharmaceutical industry, especially vital products for chronic diseases, pointing out that the pricing process is done fairly and undergoes 9 stages before decisions of price increase.
Chairman of the Egyptian Drug Authority said that the Drug shortage isn’t a local or global phenomenon; But it is a temporary situation which occurs sometimes due to the lack of raw material, in addition to the delayed arrival of shipments of raw materials.
He said that ‘not ensuring a strategic stock of important and life-saving pharmaceutical products may lead to their shortage in the market during periods of high demand’. He added. ’The global shortage of finished products or raw materials is one of the most important causes of drug shortage, and the closure or development of some production lines may be a cause of drug shortage.
On the situation regarding the re-pricing of some pharmaceutical products, he said: After the liberalization of the exchange rate, companies started to demand that their products’ prices be reviewed according to the current economic variables, to ensure the regularity of the production process, and thus the availability of products and their similars and alternatives.
Dr.Ali El Ghamrawy revealed the measures taken by the Authority to guarantee the availability of various pharmaceutical products in the market, this involved expanding the production and releasing of increasing amounts of important pharmaceutical products; increasing the quantities of pharmaceutical products already in the Egyptian market, Besides expediting import of additional shipments of active raw materials and all production supplies, with optimal utilization of production lines’ capacities in factories, as well as increasing the available therapeutic similars or available alternatives.
Dr. Ali El Ghamrawy, Chairman of the Egyptian Drug Authority, pointed out that the authority provides all technical and procedural support to industry partners at various stages; the authority has enhanced quality control systems to ensure compliance with international specifications and standards, in addition to ensuring strategic inventory of all requirements of the production process, as well as coordinating with the Central Bank to finalize procedures for opening documentary credits for the public sector with various banks.
He continued: We support the availability of important therapeutic similars products and transparency by announcing lists of drug shortages continuously , with positive follow-up on the availability of important and strategic products represented in the 16 therapeutic groups that include the most strategic priority products, and he said: In case of detecting the shortage of some pharmaceutical products, companies are contacted, reviewing stocks and releasing , and ensuring the continuity of the production process.
The Chairman of the Egyptian Drug Authority explained that the authority adheres to a policy of not exporting any of the pharmaceutical products that have a shortage in the market until after co-ordination to ensure the availability of a sufficient quantity that meets the needs of the market for a period ranging between 1 to 3 months.
Regarding the localization of the pharmaceutical industry, Dr Ali Al-Ghamrawy said: We aim to localize the manufacture of vital pharmaceutical products to reduce the import bill, pointing out that the private sector plays a pivotal role in the pharmaceutical industry; 91 out of every 100 packages in the market are produced locally., stating that the Authority supports the Egyptian state's directives to support investment, which contributes to strengthening the national economy by supporting the penetration of the local product: Egypt's total exports of pharmaceuticals and medical devices from the beginning of the year to the end of March 2024 amounted to USD 432.2 million.
Dr. Ali El-Ghamrawy, Chairman of the Egyptian Drug Authority, said that the pharmaceutical industry in Egypt is largely dependent on private sector companies, both local and international, pointing out that the private sector produces about 93% of the total local production of pharmaceutical products, distributed by 74% for local companies and 26% for international companies in Egypt, while the government sector contributes only 7% of local production, and that the total local production represents about 91% of the volume of consumption in terms of the number of units sold.
The total Egyptian exports of pharmaceuticals and medical devices to the world in March 2024 amounted to about $148.2 million, which is an increase from the monthly average of about $144.1 million.
He continued: Thanks to the directives of the political leadership, the Egyptian pharmaceutical market has witnessed remarkable positive growth over the past period, with the market size rising to more than EGP 215 billion in 2023, compared to EGP 40 billion in 2014.
He pointed out that the public and private sectors contribute significantly to achieving self-sufficiency in the Egyptian pharmaceutical market, where the self-coverage rate reaches 91% of the total market sales, which reflects the ability to meet the needs of the local market and control supply and demand, and the remaining 9% of sales are covered by imported finished pharmaceutical products.
On the pricing system of pharmaceutical products, the Chairman of the Egyptian Drug Authority said: The pricing system for pharmaceutical products in Egypt is based on multiple criteria and principles to ensure a balance between the availability of pharmaceutical products with affordable prices for citizens and ensuring the sustainability of manufacturers. Specialized committees at the EDA review the prices of pharmaceutical products in response to economic changes, most notably the liberalization of the exchange rate and inflation, and the impact on production costs, and determine the appropriate price for each product based on this cost while adding a specific profit margin to the cost of production to ensure the sustainability of manufacturers.
He continued: The prices of pharmaceutical products are reviewed periodically to maintain consistency with changes in production costs and economic inflation, and the prices of pharmaceutical products can be adjusted by increasing or decreasing based on periodic reviews to meet the needs of the market and ensure the availability of pharmaceutical products: We aim to provide citizens with affordable alternatives by not increasing the price of all pharmaceutical groups."