PPMA urges govt to update drug laws in line with recommendations

LAHORE: Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) has urged the government to update existing drug laws in line with the recommendations of the relevant stakeholders.

“There is a need of updating obsolete drug laws conforming to the global best practices, as it are in the larger interest of the patients and under stress pharma industry,” former Chairman PPMA Mian Khalid Misbah-ur-Rehman said while talking to a select group of media men.

He claimed that the multinationals (MNCs) were fast leaving the country due to excessive and unjustified regulations. “At present, only four MNCs are actively investing in the country. Patients are the ultimate sufferers, as the situation is going from bad to worse with every passing day and new therapies will become rare in times to come if immediate action is not taken,” Khalid Misbah said.

He requested government to intervene immediately for saving the local pharma industry in the larger interests of the country and the health sector. Referring to the existing laws, he said that the world has moved forward but Pakistan was still sticking to decades old regulations. He appreciated the federal government’s step of deregulating prices of non-essential drugs, saying this will provide much needed oxygen for survival of pharma industry and attract investment.

He further said that to fully realize the huge potential of earning much-needed foreign exchange through exports by Pharma sector it was critical to provide a conducive environment. “Drugs export of India is more than $28 billion annually. It is due to supportive environment there for FDI”, he said, adding: “There was a dire need to bring the pharma sector regulations up to the mark of neighboring countries as well as global best practices and make Pakistan an attractive market for investment with its population of over 240 million and generate pharma exports of US $ 3 billion within few years.”

He urged the government to amend existing drug laws and ensure timely revision of essential drugs prices to improve medicines availability, attract FDI and provide impetus for MNCs to stay in Pakistan to allow latest therapies to reach our country.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024