Established in 1972, the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries (BAPI) has been instrumental in shaping the pharmaceutical industry. BAPI’s members include large, medium, small, national, and foreign companies that collectively produce 96% of Bangladesh’s pharmaceuticals. This showcases BAPI’s credibility and accountability as an organization. The potential for exporting medicines to CIS countries holds promising prospects according to the Economic Reporter.
The Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries (BAPI) recently visited Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, revealing that high-quality medicines produced in Bangladesh have great potential for export to CIS countries. Currently, these nations depend on imports for 90% of their medicine supply. Additionally, there are promising opportunities for establishing joint venture pharmaceutical industries between Bangladesh and Uzbekistan as well as Kazakhstan. The delegation, led by adviser SM Shafiuzzaman, conducted the visit from June 28 to July 6.
During the visit, the delegation observed that there is a necessity for the government to expedite diplomatic activities with countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). These countries obtained independence after the Soviet Union dissolved. The delegation expressed their belief that in the future, Bangladesh could potentially export pharmaceutical products valued at over Tk 100 crore to these CIS nations. However, achieving this would require diplomatic initiatives and increasing skilled personnel in Bangladesh’s embassies as well as establishing representation from Bangladesh in CIS countries where it is currently absent.
The purpose of the visit by a delegation of pharmaceutical representatives from Bangladesh to the CIS countries was to seek out new markets and enhance the presence of domestically produced medications in international markets. Throughout their visit, the Bangladeshi delegation engaged in discussions with Professor A Ikramov, the Health Minister of Uzbekistan, as well as other senior officials from the health ministry. The delegation was informed by the health minister that Bangladesh currently exports high-quality medicines to 72 nations.
During the talks, the Uzbek Health Minister expressed interest in importing medicine from Bangladesh quickly and establishing joint-venture medicine producing industries with them. To facilitate this, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed between Uzbek State-Joint-Stock Concern-Uzpharmsanoat and BAPI. Subsequently, the pharmaceutical delegation from Bangladesh held discussions with the vice-chairman of the committee on health and medicine affairs of the health ministry of Kazakhstan, along with other senior officials.
The Kazakh officials were informed in detail about the pharmaceutical industry of Bangladesh by the delegation. Additionally, the delegation had productive discussions with both the Pharmaceutical Importers Association and Manufacturers Association as well as with major importers from both countries. Various pharmaceutical companies from Bangladesh and established importers from both countries also signed several Memoranda of Understanding (MOU). During the visit, Bangladesh Ambassador in Tashkent, Hasib Aziz, provided full cooperation to the Bangladesh delegation.
According to a press release from BAPI, the Bangladesh pharmaceutical delegation consisted of several members. These include BAPI secretary general and managing director of Incepta Pharmaceuticals Ltd Abdul Muktadir, vice-president and managing director Medimet Pharmaceuticals Ltd Khondokar Tariq-ul-Islam, director of the drug administration directorate Md Ismail Hossain, director (planning and commercial) of Incepta Pharmaceuticals Ltd Ms Akhter Jahan Hasnin Muktadir, BAPI executive committee member and managing director of Edruc Ltd Feroz Uddin Khan, BAPI executive committee member and executive director of Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Ltd Md Halimuzzaman, BAPI member and director (marketing) of Biopharma Laboratories Ltd Dr Liaquat Ullah, business development manager Md Sami Akhter, and director of the Export Promotion Bureau Omar Faruque.
