Saudi pharma market forecast to hit SAR 31 bln by year-end: official

Saudi Arabia's pharmaceutical market value is likely to grow by 5 percent to SAR 31 billion by the end of the year, Faisal Bin Dail, Chairman of the National Committee for Pharmaceutical Industries (NCPI), told CNBC Arabia.

“More than 20 local factories fulfill 25 percent of the Kingdom’s demand for pharmaceuticals. The market is expanding through the construction of new production lines or entry of new players into the market,” Bin Dail said.

The local factories operate in line with international standards, with many of them registered in global markets while others export products to the US.

These factories are evaluated by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to ensure product quality and efficiency.

“The contribution of local products to the Kingdom’s economy could be boosted to 40 percent by 2020 on potential support from the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority (LCGPA) that will focus on locally-manufactured medications,” Bin Dail added.

In addition, local pharmaceutical products received strong turnout from the private sector, as 30 percent of consumed medications are locally-manufactured, compared to just 15 percent in the public sector.

Bin Dail said local products are facing fierce competition, and some foreign manufacturers may cut prices to boost their market share.

The sector has also made great progress in job localization, as Saudization rate ranges between 30 and 60 percent in some facilities.

Bin Dail said he expects the decision to localize medical representative jobs to bolster Saudization rates in the sector.

Around 6,000 medical representatives are employed across the Kingdom. The localization decision aims to bolster the Saudization rate to 40 percent by the end of 2019, 80 percent in 2020 and 100 percent by mid-2021.

Saudi Arabia is planning to localize jobs of technical and quality managers at factories, the top official concluded.