Bitter Pills:Medicines & The Third World Poor | Page 149

To date this policy has not led to the expected rise in bulk drug production, and
the new policies have been heavily criticised by the industry which blames overregulation for holding back growth in this area. l501 Nevertheless, in contrast to
most developing countries, India has a sizeable state owned drug industry which
produces predominantly bulk drugs. Both public and private Indian companies
now export drugs and production technology. (5I)
Very few developing countries have as much bargaining power as India in dealing
with subsidiaries of the transnationals. Bangladesh, for example, has up till now
had little success in persuading foreign manufacturers to produce more bulk drugs
locally. Foreign companies that set up local production whilst the country was
part of Pakistan were allowed to do so on condition that they produced some
raw materials as well as finished drugs. However, because the terms of their
undertaking were left extremely vague, some manufacturers have been able to
dodge the issue, justifying their reluctance to set up bulk drugs production on
the grounds that it would be uneconomical. <52)
This apparent impasse has encouraged a number of countries, including
Bangladesh, to look to government-controlled production as the best solution
to guaranteeing supplies of essential drugs for public health needs. In Bangladesh
the Government's existing formulation plant at Tejgaon is being expanded and
there are plans to set up new production units to produce raw materials.<53)
In the small African state of Lesotho the Government has established local
production with technical support from the International Dispensary Association,
a non-profit making organization. The Lesotho Dispensary Association, set up
in 1977, satisfies Lesotho's needs for basic drugs and is now expanding its
production to supply neighbouring countries. (541
Some countries have already succeeded in setting up large-scale state- controlled
production. China, which is now reported to be virtually self- sufficient in drugs
and a sizeable exporter, is an obvious example.(55> In Cuba the situation before
the 1959 revolution closely resembled that of many developing countries today.
Cuba was dependent on imports from foreign manufacturers for 80% of its drug
requirements. A recent UNCTAD study sho ws that now the Cuban state-owned
industry supplies over 80% of the country's needs. Like India, Cuba has also
developed its own technology to produce some bulk drugs. (561
Less well-known is what the UNCTC has recently described as the Egyptian
Government's "remarkable achievement in moving the country from being
dependent on imports for 80% of its drug needs (in 1963) to producing 83% of
total demand locally" (in 1980).(571 The public sector alone can now meet nearly
70% of total requirement.
Egypt's achievement can be directly attributed to the comprehensive drugs policy
pursued by successive Governments since all but two drug companies were
nationalised in 1962/63. The first step taken was to centralise policy-making on
imports, production and distribution under one state agency. A drug research
and control centre was set up to carry out quality control and production research.
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