Online Reporter
Sunday Mail Reporter
THE Government has earmarked US$10 million for the procurement of medicines manufactured by local pharmaceutical companies in a major push to strengthen domestic industry, reduce reliance on imports and create a sustainable market for local producers.
The funding, which has been made available to the National Pharmaceutical Company (NatPharm), forms part of a broader Government strategy to drive industrialisation by prioritising local procurement and integrating micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) into national supply chains. Industry and Commerce Minister Mangaliso Ndlovu revealed the initiative during the inaugural Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Indaba held in Harare last week. He said the allocation was one of several practical interventions aimed at supporting local manufacturers while creating opportunities for Zimbabwean enterprises.
Before addressing the indaba, Minister Ndlovu said he had convened a meeting involving the Ministry of Health and Child Care, NatPharm, the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ) and local pharmaceutical manufacturers to assess progress on the utilisation of the facility.
“So, I had a committee that comprised the Ministry of Health and Child Care, MCAZ, NatPharm and the manufacturers of pharmaceutical products because the President gave us US$10 million for NatPharm to procure drugs manufactured in Zimbabwe. We need a Zimbabwean story, a story where we are supporting people who are doing honest, hard work . . . ,” he said.
Minister Ndlovu said the funding followed the Government’s recognition of the strong performance and growing capacity of Zimbabwe’s pharmaceutical industry, which is supported by a robust regulatory framework.
“Following our plea that our pharmaceutical manufacturing industry is doing very well, aided by the very strong regulatory environment by MCAZ, which was the first regulator in Africa to attain Maturity Level Four, we made a plea to the President because we still saw NatPharm importing more medicines instead of supporting local manufacturers. The President then availed the US$10 million for the procurement of locally manufactured drugs by NatPharm and the Ministry of Health,” he said.
Stakeholders, he added, had been tasked with establishing a framework to operationalise the facility, which will function as a revolving fund to ensure its long-term sustainability.
The Government was strengthening policies that require ministries, departments and agencies to prioritise locally produced goods and services, creating a ready market for MSMEs and cooperatives.
Minister Ndlovu said Zimbabwe’s industrialisation agenda depended on building stronger linkages between MSMEs and large corporations through local procurement and value addition.
“We source most of the raw materials in the manufacturing sector from MSMEs.
“There is now a call for manufacturing-for-manufacturing, where raw materials used by large corporates have to be produced largely by MSMEs. Consumables and certain services are also mainly offered by MSMEs, and we need to create these strong linkages.”
He said the Government was also extending the local procurement model to agriculture and mining, sectors that present significant opportunities for MSMEs to supply inputs, equipment and specialised services. A committee led by Permanent Secretaries had already been established by the Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development to strengthen local participation in 15 priority agricultural value chains.
“We are looking at industrial supplies into farming itself — where are we getting our fertiliser, our implements, tractors and who is manufacturing those? If we are relying on imports, again it is an area to focus on,” he said.
It is believed that a similar committee would be established for the mining sector to deepen mineral value addition, strengthen domestic industrial linkages and expand business opportunities for MSMEs.
Bongani Ndlovu