Medicine prices in Vietnam in lower range in Asia-Pacific: conference

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Medicine prices in Vietnam are in the lower range compared to those in other countries in the region, heard the Asian Federation for Pharmaceutical Sciences (AFPS) Conference 2023 that is taking place in Hanoi from November 8-10.

Themed “Collaboration for Breakthroughs in Pharmaceutical Sciences", the event is co-hosted by the Hanoi University of Pharmacy, AFPS, and the Ho Chi Minh University of Medicine and Pharmacy and held biennially among AFPS’s 24 member countries.

As the largest pharmaceutical conference in the Asia-Pacific, the event has attracted over 500 delegates in-person, including around 200 from 26 countries and territories, and 350 rapporteurs delivering oral and poster presentations.

Vice Health Minister Nguyen Thi Lien Huong speaks at the event (Photo: VNA)

In her opening speech, Vice Health Minister Nguyen Thi Lien Huong cited a report on the Vietnamese pharmaceutical industry as saying that as of 2022, the total value of the domestic pharmaceutical market had reached nearly 7 billion USD, with an annual growth rate of 10.6%. The average spending on medicines per capita hit 75 USD.

In Vietnam, there are 228 pharmaceutical companies that meet Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards, including 17 facilities that have been certified with EU-GMP, which is equivalent to EU-GMP and PIC/S-GMP. The industry is currently seeing 90% of raw materials being imported and focusing on producing generic drugs and exporting several products, she said.

To sustainably develop the industry, she said the Government has approved a national strategy till 2030 with a vision to 2045.

The conference and sideline events provide a platform to share knowledge and experience among scientists, medical staff, pharmaceutical manufacturers and policymakers, toward a sustainable healthcare system.

Participants are discussing topics in specific areas, including clinical and social pharmacy, pharmaceutical management, pharmacology and biomedical science, drug research and development, medicine formulation and distribution; natural compounds and traditional medicine; and pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and biosimilar analysis./.