Iraq’s pharmaceutical industry: Output surpasses 40% threshold
Shafaq News – Baghdad
Iraq has increased locally produced medicines and medical supplies to more than 40% of national demand as part of a government plan to achieve self-sufficiency and strengthen the country’s pharmaceutical industry.
Health Ministry spokesman Saif Al-Badr told Shafaq News on Sunday that the government is pursuing a policy of localizing pharmaceutical manufacturing as a core component of Iraq’s health-security strategy, noting that producing medicines and medical equipment domestically supports the economy, creates jobs, and accelerates distribution to the provinces.
According to Al-Badr, Iraq now operates around 40 pharmaceutical and medical-supply factories producing more than 650 therapeutic products and items, reinforcing the presence of locally made goods and stabilizing the drug-supply chain.
Speaking to our agency, Faten Mohammed Jarallah, director general of Popular Medical Clinics Department, said the ministry has placed more than 1.7 million electronic price stickers on medicines imported by the private sector over the past two years to regulate the pharmaceutical market.
Inspection teams, Jarallah added, continue field visits to monitor drug quality, curb smuggling and counterfeiting, and ensure citizens receive properly priced, safe medicines. She stressed that all medicines sold in pharmacies now carry official price labels and warned that violators will face closure under the law.
Earlier this month, National Health Factory director Mayada al-Khaykani told Shafaq News that Iraq’s pharmaceutical industry is entering a new growth phase with the rollout of a five-plant medical “Health City.”
Read more: Iraq’s Pharmaceutical Crisis: shortages, counterfeit drugs, and ineffective reforms
