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news.In order to boost the local pharmaceutical industry, Algeria continues to prohibit the importation of drugs from other countries. Already, they have stopped importing 300 drugs and the number is expected to reach 800 by 2012.
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Ministry of Health aims to reduce the country’s import bill of $1.8 billion due to 70% of imported pharmaceutical products that was noticed in 2007.
It seeks to increase the current production of 30% of its needs, where 15% and 16% are essential drugs, and expects to produce them around 80% to 90%.
Ministry of Health will establish a list of essential drugs and look for means to convince manufacturers to produce them.
It appeals to the local and foreign operators to invest in production rather than marketing the imported drug to meet the country’s pharmaceutical demand – as quoted in Ennahar Online.
Lounes Smati, Director of pharmacy at Ministry of Health in Algeria, said: We are forcing drug makers to extend the range to produce higher, from 330 to 700 or 800 INN (international nonproprietary name) in two to three years.
The decision to stop importing the same products, that are being manufactured within the country, was already initiated by Ministry of Health last year.