Factors influencing pharmaceutical manufacturing Qatar

Access to proper treatment and medicines is a basic human right. Every country has its own policies and regulations about providing generic medicines and other illness-specific drugs. Fulfilling this right can give a quality life to an individual along with superb health. But, in a country like Qatar, there are certain factors that restrain access to high-quality medicines.

These factors are:

• Technical problems

• Social beliefs

• Social values

• Political reasons

• Economic reasons

• Costly medicine

Qatar is considered the richest country in the world per capita. The National Health Strategy 2011-2016 accompanied by Qatar National Vision 2030 intend to progress the healthcare vision of Qatar. It is through generating a unique, world-class and patient-centric healthcare system in Qatar and the Middle East.

Again, presently, public investment in pharmaceutical manufacturing in Qatar has increased. It has given the nation its highest per capita health expenditure. There is a solid platform called the National Health Insurance Scheme that gives assurance of a healthy population along with ingress to a health care system that is much affordable in nature.

The government can control various stages of Qatar’s pharmaceutical supply chain:

 Price control on the pharmaceutical manufacturer

 Brand premiums

 Reference pricing

 Profit controls on the medicine manufacturers

 International benchmarking

 Fixed margins

 Elimination of tariff and tax

 Capitation system

 Digressive mark-ups

Medicine exporters in Qatar deal with these products:

o Tablets

o Capsules

o Ointments

o Syrups

o Capsules

o Sachets

o Drops

o Injections

These pharma products are US FDA, WHO-GMP, and ISO 9001 certified. The exporters deliver medicines on time without any hassle. In fact, they don’t stop just after the delivery. Instead, they keep on being in touch with the client company for follow-ups and fix any issue if occurs. Medicine exporters in Qatar tend to build a strong relationship with each client company.

Retail price of medicines in Qatar depends on certain factors:

 Foundation for fixing original cost

 Cost of shipping

 Cost of distribution

 Import duties

 Cost of product registration

 Transferring cost

 Tax

Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office:

Qatar falls in the MENA region. It comes under WHO’s EMRO. It is a country of high income. But, it lacks a proper national pharmaceutical policy. However, Qatar is trying to control the pharma sector and decrease the hit of non-communicable diseases. The nation experiences lots of demise due to cardiovascular diseases.

The current laws in Qatar is based on the up-to-the-minute versions of decrees that were validated in the years 2005 and 2011 respectively. The Qatari government is revising the existing regulations that govern the cost of medicines.

In the year 2012, adoption of cost-insurance freight had taken place as pharmaceutical registration’s landed price. It includes the private sector in all the member states of GCC. Furthermore, Qatar is depending on the ex-factory as well as the selling price of the pharma products in the country of origin for setting registration cost. Again, the nation is currently relying on the CIF price in at least 30 countries that import medicines.

Public and private sectors in Qatar:

There are specific pricing and procurement mechanisms in both the public and private sectors in Qatar. In the public sector, the pharmaceutical companies in Qatar procure medicines via various channels. The key channel is GCC bulk procurement along with other agreements which are done directly with medicine manufacturers and local agents.

Moreover, the public sector’s pricing is much lower than that of the private sector. The main reason is the bulk procurement and the process of a public offering or tendering. Another distinguished cause is the low total cumulative mark-up margin. The mark-up schemes’ range varies from 2 to 10 percent on the price of purchasing.

The success of generic medicine supplier in Qatar:

Multinational generic medicine suppliers have achieved success in Qatar. It is because of the brand consciousness of prescribers and patients. It covers both prescription medicines and over-the-counter drugs.

Present day Qatar:

However, Qatar has a small market size. So, there is a lack of abundant manufacturing plants. Qatar imports a considerable number of medicines from India, Europe, North African countries, etc. The present day Qatar is trying very hard to develop an integrated healthcare system. The primary objective is to improve the health of the entire nation by facilitating citizens’ access to affordable medicines. Pharmaceutical companies in Qatar are manufacturing high quality drugs. Many multinational companies have joined hands with the country, and are producing and supplying superior drugs at affordable price.

Moreover, the demand for accurate treatment has risen due to the growing population and non-communicable diseases. The nation’s expenditure per capita on medicine will surely create new and innovative opportunities for generic medicine suppliers. The government is supporting the investors and hence, the pharmaceutical manufacturing Qatar is gaining a new height.