The Sri Lankan pharmaceutical industry with continuous Government support is targeting a US$ 1 billion export income by year 2030, making it the third highest export revenue earner of the country, industry experts said yesterday.
Sri Lanka’s private pharmaceutical manufacturers currently cater to a 25 percent demand of Out-Patient Divisions (OPDs) at all state hospitals under an agreement signed between the Sri Lanka Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Association (SLPMA) and the Health Ministry in 2014. This agreement covers the supply of 88 essential drugs in state-run hospitals.
“We aim to produce over 300 essential drugs saving the country an estimated US$100 million annually in foreign exchange,” SLPMA President Sanjaya Jayaratne said. Jayaratne also commended the support extended by the Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Mahinda Rajapaksa Government towards the local pharmaceuticals industry.
“We are grateful to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa for initiating the concept of the Guaranteed Buy Back Scheme under which essential drugs are purchased by the Ministry of Health.
We are currently exporting essential drugs worth US$ 10 million annually and our target is to increase it to US$ 1 billion within the next 10 years”, Jayaratne added.
Local pharmaceutical production began six decades ago in 1956, where currently many players in the market produce international quality drugs in keeping with World Health Organization (WHO) standards. They have also invested more than Rs 20 billion for the expansion of production facilities in the industry.