Dr. Al Amiri: UAE a leading hub for international pharmaceutical companies

UAE, March 16, 2016 – During the 21st Dubai International Pharmaceuticals and Technologies Conference and Exhibition (DUPHAT), H.E. Dr. Amin Hussein Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Policy and Licensing of the Ministry of Health & Prevention and Vice Chairman for Supreme National Drug Registration and Pricing Committee, has underscored the UAE’s status as one of the leading global hubs for major international pharmaceutical companies in the MENA region and across the world. 

H.E. Dr. Al Amiri said that DUPHAT’s success for more than two decades is a testament to the UAE Government’s support for initiatives that encourage investments in pharmaceutical sector. The conference continues to attract a large number of local, regional and international participants. 

The Ministry of Health and Prevention also emphasized that UAE leaders have enhanced the country’s capabilities and infrastructure to support the global pharmaceutical firms’ expansion in the country, were the number of scientific centers that represents pharmaceutical firms’ in the world reached to 47 at the end of 2015 distributed over the country after it was 32 in 2014.  Regional and local companies have set up their operations in the UAE, citing the government’s full support for pharmaceutical industry in particular and healthcare sector in general. The total number of factories in the UAE grew to 16 by the end of 2015 from 14 in 2014.

The Ministry-approved 18 plants, which will be operational in the next four years, will bring the number of factories manufacturing innovative medicines in the UAE to 34 by the end of 2020.

As for local private pharmacies, the number reached to 3,536 companies operating under the supervision of the Ministry of Health and Prevention, Health Authority-Abu Dhabi, and Dubai Health Authority. The UAE was one of the first countries in the region with established pharmaceutical industry, which operate by 20 pharmacy management. A total of 11 chain pharmacies which they run around 700 private pharmacies under the chain pharmacies.  

The UAE has also launched six initiatives to lower down the prices of nearly 8,000 different medicines, with reduction ranging from 1 per cent to 85 per cent.  The seventh initiative will be launched in the coming days.