Bangladesh pharma sector eyeing Cambodian market

The pharmaceutical industry of Bangladesh, an emerging Asian champion of generic drugs, is eyeing Cambodian market owing to its huge growth potential, Bangladeshi media reported.

The pharmaceutical industry in Bangladesh has grown from about $25 million in 1982 to about $3 billion as of June 2020, according to the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA).

Fueled by the increasing purchasing power of the domestic population, the domestic pharmaceutical market is forecast to exceed $6 billion by 2025. As of now, the industry is serving 97 percent of the domestic market and exporting to more than 100 countries around the world, says BIDA.

“The Bangladeshi drug market is dominated by the production of branded generic drugs, which account for almost 97 percent of the drugs produced locally, while patented drugs make up the remaining.

“Currently, there are 271 allopathic, 205 ayurvedic, 271 unani, 32 herbal and 79 homoeopathic drug producing companies in the country.”

The pharma majors of Bangladesh are betting big on the successful implementation of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between both nations to enter and gradually dominate the Cambodian market.

The FTA was a prominent topic of discussion when former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen visited Bangladesh and held talks with Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Beacon Pharmaceuticals is among the pharma companies of Bangladesh eyeing the Cambodian market. According to reports, the Bangladeshi pharma major is keen on entering the Cambodian market. Beacon already has registered its 28 anti-cancer and anti-diabetic products in the Cambodia market.

“Popular Pharmaceuticals PLC. starts its operation in Cambodia since 2016 and we hope it will be a good market for Bangladeshi Pharmaceuticals as like Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Kenya and the Philippines” says Mr. Muhammad Anwarul Hoque Khan, Manager, International Marketing of Popular Pharmaceuticals PLC.

“Without special facilities, we cannot increase our medicine exports to Cambodia by competing with China and India. If an FTA is signed with the country, our exports will get a boost,” SM Shafiuzzaman, general secretary of the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceuticals Industries, was earlier quoted by Bangladesh’s leading English daily The Business Standard.

Statista, an online platform that specializes in data gathering and visualization, says revenue in the country’s pharmaceuticals market is projected to surpass $170 million in 2023. “The country’s pharma market’s largest segment is oncology drugs with a projected market volume of $26.28m in 2023. Revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate of 5.06 percent.

Various reports have shown that Indian, Chinese and European companies have been dominating the pharma market, which has grown at a substantial annual rate of more than 10 percent during the last decade.

Sreekanth Ravindran / Khmer Times / December 28, 2023.