Vietnam's pharmaceutical market is currently worth about USD7 billion and is forecast to grow by 10-15 per cent a year, health minister Dao Hong Lan said at a meeting on August 7.
"There are currently 245 pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities nationwide, including 26 plants that meet EU-GMP standards or their equivalent," Lan said. "Some companies have gradually mastered the technology to produce specialised and high-tech medicines and have begun to enter markets with stringent requirements."
Domestically manufactured medicines account for about 60 per cent of the total volume of medicines used in Vietnam and 46 per cent of their total value.
However, Lan said the country's pharmaceutical industry still faced a number of challenges, including limited capacity for research and development of new medicines and pharmaceutical ingredients. Vietnam's pharmaceutical chemical industry remains small-scale and has low competitiveness, while domestic manufacturers continue to rely on imported raw materials, technologies and some pharmaceutical products.
The industry's participation in global pharmaceutical value chains also remains below its potential, she said.
To ensure people can access medicines at affordable prices while strengthening research, manufacturing and technology transfer, Lan called on the Drug Administration of Vietnam to continue advising on improvements to the country's pharmaceutical institutions, policies and legislation.
Ensuring an adequate and timely supply of quality medicines at reasonable prices should remain a consistent priority, she said.
Another key task is to develop the pharmaceutical industry, particularly the production of pharmaceutical ingredients, high-tech medicines and rare drugs. Authorities should also strengthen quality control, post-market surveillance and efforts to combat counterfeit and substandard medicines.
The industry should also step up international cooperation, streamline administrative procedures, accelerate digital transformation and build a unified pharmaceutical data system, Lan said.