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High time for Bangladesh to grab piece of global drug market

Acme Laboratories DMD talks to The Daily Star

Monjur Mahmud
It is high time for Bangladesh to explore the opportunity of drug exports in the global market in the wake of the World Trade Organisation deal on medicine, said a senior executive of a leading pharmaceutical company.
"Undera preferential treatment, the leastdeveloped countries can produce and export drugs until 2016 without having patent rights. It's an opportunity and we should seize it," Dr Jabil R Sinha, deputy managing director of The Acme Laboratories Ltd, told The Daily Star in an interview.
Bangladesh imports almost 100 percent bulk drugs until now. Setting up of a treatment plant is a prerequisite to produce bulk drugs, known as active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), locally.
"We have already spent almost four years after we got the opportunity in Doha Development Round. Talks are going on to set up the plant but I see no action yet," Sinha observed.
For export it is mandatory for each drug to get registered in every country. Sometimes, cost of registration for a single drug in some countries goes as high as US$10,000. "So, it is very difficult for local companies to increase exports in the global market without government incentive."
According to a government rule, a company can spend not more than $2,500 per month for maintaining office, staff salary and others abroad. But in reality it is not possible to operate an office with this ceiling.
"The government should give incentives to the pharmaceutical companies so that they can explore the opportunities. Instead, the pharmaceutical companies are paying tax on imported bulkdrugs," he said.
The Acme is celebrating 50 years of its inception. Late Hamidur Rahman Sinha founded 'The Acme Laboratories' in 1954 with limited formulations of medicines in oral and powder forms and it became a private limited company in 1976.
And today it has become the second largest
pharmaceutical company in the country after Square with the annual turnover amounting to Tk270 crore, Sinha said.
"Fifty years ago it was not an easy task to set up a highly sophisticated industry without bank loans and government assistance. So, it demanded immense effort, strong determination along with vision and dreams," Sinha felt.
Explaining what difficulties Acme had to overcome in its early days, Sinha added it was very difficult for the local companies to compete with the multinational ones as the foreign companies were dominating the local market.
The country's drug policy in 1980s gave a big
boost to the local company. Local companies had to pay less tax than the multinationals, helping the locals to become competitive.
In 2004, some sophisticated formulations, dry powder inhaler (DPI), metered dose inhaler and suppository had been included in the product range of Acme.
Acme's success at home prompted it to explore global market. The year 1995 was another milestone for Acme as it started exporting medicines to Bhutan and the company is now exporting drugs to 12 countries including Hong Kong, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Philippines.
Among the medicines exported, antibiotic, antihypertensive, antiulcerant and vitamins are the most important items.
Acme started exporting drug to Pakistan in 1999 and it is now planning to set up a manufacturing plant within few years there. "We are growing in the global market," Sinha added.
After achieving rapid growth, Acme expanded and diversified its business. Now the group has its presence in information and communication technology (ICT), food and beverages, textiles and garment manufacturing and exporting, tour and travels and printing.
"My father's motto was to make medicines at affordable prices so that it can help the poor side by side a way of making money. His advice was 'Always do an honest business' and that is why we never compromise on quality."
Acme has also plans to set up a biotechnology laboratory and a cancer and diabetic research centre in the country within next five years.
"We did not reach a stage to say it has been enough for us. There is no end to it," he went on.
Sinha felt unity among family members is one of the main reasons for which Acme has been a very successful group. Presently, four sons of late Hamidur Rahman Sinha and husbands of two daughters look after all operations of Acme.