While the Ministry of Health has created favourable conditions fordomestic pharmaceutical companies to expand production, the industryneeds to develop a strategy to attract investment, said Minister ofHealth Nguyen Quoc Trieu.
Most domestic pharmaceuticalcompanies simply produce basic medicines but not the more specific,higher value products supplied by foreign-invested ones, said Trieu.Over 90 percent of their raw materials are imported, and they lackhigh-tech production lines, he said.
Vu Thi Thuan, generaldirector of domestic pharmaceutical firm Traphaco, said that Vietnamhas many kinds of herbal ingredients available but has not built onthis natural advantage.
Only about 10 percent of materialsfor the industry come from the domestic market, but this could be muchhigher if manufacturers took advantage of diverse local materials, Thuansays, urging the Government to generate a strategy for developingmarkets and growing areas for medicinal herbs under the GoodAgricultural and Collection Practices (GACP) of the World HealthOrganisation.
Poor management of raw material supplies hasalso made it more difficult for the authorities to keep the prices ofmedicines stabilised, said Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do HuuHao.
The rising prices of imported pharmaceuticals also continue to put pressure on domestic prices, Hao said./.
Most domestic pharmaceuticalcompanies simply produce basic medicines but not the more specific,higher value products supplied by foreign-invested ones, said Trieu.Over 90 percent of their raw materials are imported, and they lackhigh-tech production lines, he said.
Vu Thi Thuan, generaldirector of domestic pharmaceutical firm Traphaco, said that Vietnamhas many kinds of herbal ingredients available but has not built onthis natural advantage.
Only about 10 percent of materialsfor the industry come from the domestic market, but this could be muchhigher if manufacturers took advantage of diverse local materials, Thuansays, urging the Government to generate a strategy for developingmarkets and growing areas for medicinal herbs under the GoodAgricultural and Collection Practices (GACP) of the World HealthOrganisation.
Poor management of raw material supplies hasalso made it more difficult for the authorities to keep the prices ofmedicines stabilised, said Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do HuuHao.
The rising prices of imported pharmaceuticals also continue to put pressure on domestic prices, Hao said./.
