PH pharma expo aims to attract investors

THE first Philippine Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Expo is expected to attract foreign collaboration and investors to improve the country’s medical industry.

Dr. Luis Ramon Rodriguez, president of the Medical Device Association of the Philippines (MDAP), said the event will be the “perfect avenue to learn the latest trend in pharmaceutical health care from other countries.”

Slated from February 14 to 16, the event is expected to bring together manufacturers, wholesalers, dealers and distributors of the pharmaceutical, medical diagnostic industry, machinery manufacturers, hospitals, and influential decisionmakers in the Southeast Asian region.

About 150 exhibitors from India, Indonesia, South Korea, the US and Vietnam, and more than 4,000 visitors are expected to join the expo.

“We want to invite our international partners to invest here in the country through this event, manufacture equipment that hospitals need, and for pharmaceutical industries to produce drugs that are less expensive,” said Dr. Jose Santiago, president of the Philippine Hospital Association.

Aside from showcasing new technologies in the medical industry, health experts from the Philippines are also set to speak in a series of conferences about the applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in health care.

The event, which will be held at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, will offer business opportunities, according to its organizer UniGlobal and ACE group in partnership with the Asean India Business Council.

Global data suggest that the Philippine pharmaceutical market will grow to reach P241.9 billion in 2025 following the introduction of the Universal Health Care Act.