Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil), an arm of the Union Ministry of Commerce, has sought greater access to Indian pharma products to Egyptian markets with fast-track approvals.
“We have requested the Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA) to provide fast track approval to Indian products which have already been approved by the stringent regulatory bodies like USFDA/EMA,” R Uday Bhaskar, Director-General, Pharmexcil, told BusinessLine .
As of now, India does not figure on a list of 22 reference countries of the Egyptian Drug Authority for accepting the GMP certification, among others.
Remdisivir injections
“Egypt is doing very well in formulations. We have also received Remdisivir injections from Egypt during Covid. The Suez Canal Economic Zone also has opportunities for Indian drug makers,” he said.
Pharmexcil DG had also met Yehia Zaki, Chairman and Waleid Gamal Eldien, CEO of Suez Canal Economic Zone and discussed areas of mutual opportunities.
“For example, Egypt did not have a single unit to manufacture blood collection bags (CPDA bags). Moreover, our industry is also showing some interest in Egypt in particular and West African Markets in general,” he said, adding that Egypt would act as a gateway to West African markets for Indian products.
Bhaskar had also met Major General Dr Bahaa El-Din Zidan, Chairman of the Egyptian Authority of Unified Procurement, Medical Supply & Technology Management, in Cairo last week and discussed Indo-Egyptian pharma trade and procurement opportunities.
The drug imports into Egypt is at about $2.5 billion, mostly from US and European countries. “We have also requested them to shift their focus to drugs from India which are known for quality as well as reasonable pricing. Out of top 20 global players of generics, eight are from India,” he said.
The Egyptian Authorities were willing to discuss the feasibility of mutual collaborations in formulations as well as Active Pharma Ingredients (APIs) going forward, he added.
Expanding reach to exports to West African countries also augurs well for the Indian pharma industry as it reduces excessive dependency on the US markets by diversifying the markets.
Pharmexcil, along with some of its member companies, participated in the global pharma expo, Pharmaconex held in Cairo early this month.