On April 12, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev chaired a meeting on the development of the pharmaceutical industry.

On January 21 this year, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan signed a decree on the accelerated development of the pharmaceutical industry in 2022-2026. The document defines the task of increasing the domestic production of medicines by 3 times, bringing the level of supply of the domestic market to 80 percent in physical terms.

At the meeting, the work in this direction, and the state of sectoral projects were criticized.

Uzbekistan annually consumes $1.6 billion worth of pharmaceutical products. Most of this volume – almost $1.2 billion in production – is imported.

The indicators of production capacities in the regions are recognized as absolutely unsatisfactory. In Kashkadarya, Surkhandarya, Khorezm, Bukhara, and Fergana regions, local producers provide only 2-5 percent of regional consumption with their products.

In this regard, the Pharmaceutical Industry Development Agency has been tasked with completely restructuring the work with projects. Measures have been identified to study the demand for medicines and develop their production.

In particular, 34 projects worth $80 million are planned for the current year. Responsible persons were instructed to assist entrepreneurs and take measures for the timely launch of production. The need for negotiating with large foreign companies and attracting their brands was noted.

The Center for the Development of Investment Projects has prepared another 18 promising projects. The Head of the state recommended implementing them in cooperation with companies from countries with developed pharmaceuticals, such as India, Germany, Turkey, China, and South Korea. Credit resources for $200 million will be attracted to finance new projects and replenish working capital.

When discussing the export of the industry, it was noted that most of it falls on the city of Tashkent, Tashkent, and Syrdarya regions, while in other regions the figures are much lower. It was noted that the result of new projects should be a significant increase in the export of pharmaceutical products.

The Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Finance were instructed to organize a guaranteed purchase for 3 years of 120 items of popular medicines from local manufacturers. The importance of achieving a reduction in the cost of procurement, especially drugs for the treatment of oncological, hematological, endocrinological, and viral diseases, was emphasized.

Support for local producers was also discussed at the meeting.

To date, the list of raw materials exempt from value-added tax for the production of medicines and medical products is approved by five agencies. It was defined that from now on the list will be approved by three agencies – the Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade, the Customs Committee, and the Pharmaceutical Industry Development Agency.

The costs of domestic enterprises to obtain a GMP certificate will be compensated by the Pharmaceutical Industry Development Agency. The financing of the modernization of enterprises will be carried out with the participation of the Direct Investment Fund.

The Ministry of Agriculture and hokims of the regions were instructed to specialize 80 districts in the cultivation of medicinal plants and create appropriate plantations.

To expand this experience, all benefits and funding mechanisms provided for cooperatives and family businesses will also apply to medicinal plants.

Enterprises involved in the processing of medicinal plants will be exempted from paying customs duties on the import of raw materials, equipment, and spare parts until January 1, 2025. Up to 50 percent of their transportation costs when exporting finished products will be compensated, and they will be provided with subsidies in the amount of 600,000 soums for every 10 hectares for the water supply of plantations. Plantations of medicinal plants will not be allowed to plant any other crops.

The Head of the state supported proposals for organizing clusters of medicinal plants in the regions and opening pharmaceutical faculties in regional higher education institutions.

Heads of industries, regions, and leading enterprises in the industry and entrepreneurs involved in the cultivation of medicinal plants delivered speeches on the issues discussed. The President gave instructions on the implementation of their proposals and initiatives.

UzA