Pharmaceutical company makes inroads in Africa

When it comes to the supply of life-sustaining medication, there’s no margin for error – a fact that was patently clear to local pharmaceutical company Pharma Dynamics when it recently kicked off its entry into the African market. The distributor of generic medication in South Africa recently embarked on an ambitious plan to ensure the greater availability of affordable medication in Sub-Saharan Africa with exports to Zambia of its cardiovascular, antibiotic, allergy and flu medication. In coming months, it will start exporting to Mozambique, Nigeria and Angola. Head of Africa operations, Fungayi Chamba, says the company has for the past two years, ahead of the launch into Africa, refined its strategy to ensure the challenges of doing business in Africa are met. “On a macro-level, challenges we faced included a lack of information, the impact of poor infrastructure on distribution, grey imports and counterfeits, trade barriers and legislative compliance issues as well as difficulties with the supply chain and lead times to market.” Pharma Dynamics also continues to address the microchallenges it identified relating to healthcare in Africa, he says. “Irrational use of medicines is a major problem. It is estimated that half of all medicines are inappropriately prescribed, dispensed or sold, and that half of all patients fail to take their medicine properly,” says Chamba. “The company has therefore partnered with experienced agents in the countries of export who have the requisite market intelligence and capability to responsibly and effectively distribute our range.”