Manila hosts major pharma, healthcare expo

‘Global data suggests that the Philippine pharmaceutical market will grow to reach P241.9 billion which is equivalent to some $3.7 billion in 2025, after the introduction of the Universal Health Care Act in February 2019.’

The ASEAN India Business Council, along with UNIGLOBAL Exhibitions and ACE Group, are jointly organizing the Philippine Pharma and Healthcare Expo at the SMX Convention Center at the Mall of Asia Complex in Pasay City on 14 February to 16 February 2024.

AIBC Philippine country chair, Johnny Chotrani, who is also chairman of the Philippines-India Business Council said the event will bring together manufacturers, wholesalers, dealers and distributors in the pharmaceutical and medical diagnostic industry, pharmaceutical machinery manufacturers, hospitals and influential decision makers in the Southeast Asian region including the Philippines.

“The expo will host some 150 exhibitors from India, Indonesia, South Korea, the US, Vietnam and the Philippines, among other countries and we’re expecting as many as 3,000 visitors from here and other Southeast Asian countries,” Chotrani said.

Huge potential market

He also said that the event provides an “immense opportunity” to capture the untapped markets in the region via the Philippines.

Global data suggests that the Philippine pharmaceutical market will grow to reach P241.9 billion which is equivalent to some $3.7 billion in 2025, after the introduction of the Universal Health Care Act in February 2019, enabling the already high Indian pharmaceutical imports into the country to increase further.

“As you know, the Philippines is the largest growing economy in ASEAN and the country’s 2019 Universal Health Care Act as well as regulatory tax reforms have opened new avenues for, among others, the Indian pharmaceutical industry,” Chotrani said, pointing to recent statistics which put India’s pharmaceutical industry as the world’s 13th largest by value and third largest in terms of volume as of 2023.

India is also a leading manufacturer of generic drugs, producing over 60,000 such drugs in 60 different categories. The country’s revenue from pharmaceutical exports in 2022-2023 stood at $25.3 billion.

India is among the Philippines’ top import partners, contributing 12.6 percent of total pharma exports into the country in 2018. During that same year, generics accounted for 76 percent of the total pharmaceutical market in the country.

“They (Indian pharmaceuticals) will be among the companies from at least nine countries that will be participating in the forthcoming exhibition,” Chotrani said.

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF JOHNNY CHOTRANI AT the unveiling of the Philippine Pharma and Healthcare Expo that will be held at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City on 14 to 16 February are (from left) Johnny Chotrani, chairperson of ASEAN-India Business Council and Philippines-India Business Council; Dr. Luis Ramon Rodriguez, president, Medical Device Association of the Philippines; Bu C. Castro, medical director, Center of Excellence for Drug Evaluation and Studies; Dr. Jose Santiago, president, Philippine Hospital Association and Dr. Maria Minerva P. Calimag, president, Philippine Medical Association.