This was organized in order to raise awareness as well as to highlight the potential of Sri Lankan pharma sector to leading importers and manufacturers of pharma in Viet Nam. The webinar was attended by over 100 pharma companies in Viet Nam, Drug Authority of Viet Nam and Viet Nam Pharmaceutical Association along with the Sri Lankan pharma companies attending Medipharma Expo 2024.
Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Viet Nam Prof. A. Saj U Mendis, delivering the welcome remarks, mentioned that although the pharmaceutical manufacturing in Sri Lanka is modest in its scale and scope when compared with Viet Nam, the quality of drugs produced in Sri Lanka is quite high. He said that these products are adhering to the international standards such as ISO, WHO and EU GMP standards maintained by the industry.
Ambassador Mendis further stated that the Sri Lankan pharma companies are much eager and keen to associate, engage, form joint ventures, and to export to the Vietnamese market. He further stated that Viet Nam boasts a large pharma market in excess of USD 10 billion and envisages it to reach USD 16 billion within the next couple of years. Viet Nam is a rapidly developing economy, which could be described as among the fastest growing economies in the world, with a population of 100 million, Ambassador Mendis added.
It is strongly expected that since Viet Nam imported goods and services to the value of over USD 350 billion in 2023, the pharma companies in Sri Lanka would be able to enter the Vietnamese market as well as to have commercial engagements and joint ventures, amongst others.
Ambassador Mendis observed that Sri Lanka’s pharmaceutical market is around USD 750 million, of which 85% is imported and the remaining 15% is locally produced. He said that the Government has allocated pharma making zones in Hambantota within 200 acres to attract FDIs and joint ventures to increase domestic production of medicines and pharma with many incentives.
He urged the Vietnamese companies to seriously consider investing and engaging in the pharma sector of Sri Lanka, given the number of efficacious trade agreements and FTAs with many countries in the region. This would enable selected Vietnamese pharma companies to manufacture pharma products in Sri Lanka at a competitive cost and to market not it only in Sri Lanka but also to export to the region consisting of well over 40% of the global population, he added.
Chairman & CEO of EDB Dr Kingsley Bernard said that the pharmaceutical sector has been identified as one of the most promising and emerging sectors of Sri Lanka, not only to be developed as an import substitution industry but also as an export-oriented industry which could not only earn but could save a large quantum of foreign exchange, thus mutually benefiting both Sri Lanka and pharma corporates of Viet Nam. In Sri Lanka, around 25 pharmaceutical manufacturing companies are currently engaged in the manufacturing of a variety of pharmaceutical products.
President of Sri Lanka Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Association (SLPMA) Kalana Hewamallika made a presentation on the “Pharmaceutical Industry of Sri Lanka”, and mentioned that the SLPMA intends to produce 40% of local market requirements by 2030.
He stated that at present, Sri Lanka exports medicines to Myanmar, Cambodia, Maldives, Seychelles, Japan, and the Philippines, and Viet Nam is a new market they aim to enter.
General Manager of Astron Ltd Rohan Karunathilake and Managing Director of Morison Ltd Dinesh Kumar Athapaththu presented in detail their respective companies, objectives, and products in the Viet Nam market. This was followed by a Q&A Session, which clarified questions and elucidated the Vietnamese audience.
Minister Commercial of the Embassy Kishani Wickramasinghe while delivering the closing remarks invited the Vietnamese distributors, agents, and importers to visit Sri Lanka Pavilion at the MediPharm Expo 2024 and requested them for B2B meetings with Sri Lankan companies.
