admin
Martin Kadzere
Government is looking at boosting local production of pharmaceutical products to reduce over-reliance on imports, which at times presents a huge potential risk to national health security, according to a new Government policy document launched in Harare yesterday.
The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on global medical consumables supply chains also require localisation of production of pharmaceutical products to ensure total control and citizens’ security.
The country imports nearly 90 percent of its pharmaceutical products requirements, in the process expending hundreds of millions of scarce foreign currency.
The new policy “Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Strategy In Zimbabwe 2021-2025” launched by Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, also aims to address some of the challenges besetting the industry including doubling production of essential drugs to 60 percent and grow revenue to US$150 million from about US$32 million.
Bongani Ndlovu