Your tablet is closer. Is the country facing a shortage of medicines after the departure of foreign companies?

In the face of sanctions pressure and the withdrawal of Western drug manufacturers from the Russian market, the domestic pharmaceutical business is ready not only to replace the vacant niches, but also to expand export supplies. According to experts, our medicines today are not only not inferior to foreign ones, but also surpass them in a number of parameters. The main tasks for the industry today are to establish the production of its own pharmaceutical substances, the transition to full-cycle production and the achievement of technological sovereignty.

These issues became the central topics of discussion at the visiting meeting of the commission of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) for the pharmaceutical and medical industries, as well as the relevant committee of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, held in the capital of Mordovia.

- Now our priority is to ensure the drug independence and national security of the Russian Federation through the production of strategically significant, proprietary original drugs, - said Alexander Shokhin, President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, addressing the audience on the VKS. The proposals and recommendations made by the participants will form the basis of the action plan for the implementation of the strategy for the development of the pharmaceutical industry in the country until 2030.

As Yuri Kalinin, chairman of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs Commission, President of the Rosmedprom Association, noted, the entire flower of the Russian pharmaceutical industry came to Saransk. The venue of the meeting was not chosen by chance: the capital of the republic is famous for its historical traditions in the development of pharmaceuticals. It was here that back in 1959 one of the largest factories in the country was established, which for a long time provided a huge country with antibiotics. Today, the renovated Biochemist company continues to occupy a leading position in the production of these drugs. The anti-cancer drugs developed here have helped save millions of lives during the pandemic. And in March, Russian President Vladimir Putin, via video link, launched a new factory for the production of active pharmaceutical substances (APIs) (active substances of drugs. - Editor's note). This is exactly the area where dependence on foreign suppliers is still most noticeable. Thus, at the beginning of 2022, the share of imported substances in the Russian market was about 80%. Of this volume, India and China supplied 76.7%, the EU countries - 19.7%, and the rest - 3.6%.

However, today the situation in this area is actively changing for the better. The meeting participants visited a new enterprise that will become one of the largest manufacturers of AFS in the country. They plan to produce up to 150 items of these high-tech products here. The plant's capacity will be 340 tons per year. Localization of production will not only reduce dependence on foreign supplies, but also make drugs more affordable.

- I am pleasantly surprised by what I saw in Saransk: the production here meets the best international standards. I have visited American, European, Chinese and Indian enterprises in my time. And I can say with confidence that those who believe that foreign drugs are somehow better than Russian ones are deeply mistaken," Alexander Semenov, president of the Active Component pharmaceutical company, shared his impressions. - It's great that we have plants that are able to meet the needs for our own APIs in a variety of positions at once, and that enterprises are not afraid to actively invest in the creation of such facilities. This fully meets the objectives of the Pharma 2030 strategy. It is the production of our own pharmaceutical substances that is the key to ensuring the country's drug safety.

According to Yuri Kalinin, this issue is strategically important.

- After the collapse of the USSR, our pharmaceutical industry lost a lot and it was about its restoration. In recent years, we have increased our volumes and today we can be proud of the industry. Today, the total volume of drug production in our country is 807 billion rubles. The Pharma 2030 strategy aims to double this figure to one and a half trillion rubles. But it is important not just to increase production, but to make our drugs competitive in terms of price-quality ratio. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to coordinate the efforts of government, science and business," the expert concluded.

Peter Bely, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Promomed Group, assured that the domestic pharmaceutical business is fully capable of such a task and the country is not in danger of a shortage of medicines. Moreover, even today, Russian manufacturers sometimes surpass foreign suppliers in terms of product quality.

- You have visited our production of solid dosage forms. Only a few enterprises in Europe have such equipment as here. First of all, we practically exclude human labor: the entire tablet is assembled by a computer. This means the complete elimination of errors related to the human factor," the head explained. - The consumer should remember: it does not matter which country the tablet is from, it is important with what level of pharmaceutical safety it is made. We are proud to say that in terms of pharmaceutical safety, our products are better than most European brands.

CEO of the Association of Russian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (ARFP) Viktor Dmitriev recalled the well-known thesis that any crisis is not only a test, but also new opportunities.

- We analyzed the situation on the domestic market of medicines. One of the reasons for the withdrawal of Western manufacturers is political. And the second, oddly enough, is the business reason: it becomes difficult for them to compete with domestic companies," Dmitriev stated. - Therefore, it is easier and easier for them to leave here than to continue this fierce competition, in which they lose, losing their reputation.

- Will we be able to provide the healthcare system with medicines if foreign companies leave? Yes! - Alexander Yefremov, the general director of the plant, confidently stated. - For example, our colleagues are now preparing for shipment a new drug that will replace the products of the departed Western manufacturer tomorrow, simply because our product turned out to be better than the imported one in clinical trials. And this is just the beginning.

Dmitry Pozdnyakov, Chairman of the Government of the Republic of Moldova:

- Pharmaceuticals has always been and will always be one of the leading industries in our republic. Today, the region has developed a project for the Mordovian Federal Center for the Development of Biotechnologies, a unique site for work that was previously carried out abroad. This center will be created jointly with Promomed Group of Companies and Mordovian State University and will ensure a full cycle of production of new biotechnological drugs in the Russian Federation and guarantee the country's drug safety.

A source: rg.ru

1. https://rg.ru/2023/10/12/reg-pfo/svoia-tabletka-blizhe.html