IN GOOD health

Through its community programs, Shalina makes medicine and health treatment available to all, while leading the fight against counterfeit medicine.

Can you tell us about your first manufacturing plant in Africa?

Shalina is the market leader in sub-Saharan African pharmaceuticals, with a 35-year track record in providing quality medicines at affordable prices. In Nigeria we have been one of the fastest growing companies in the last five years, with our brands such as Ibucap, Epiderm, Shal’artem, Polygel, Hemoforce, Shaltoux, Tanzol, and Super Apeti becoming highly valued and trusted by our customers, pharmacists, and doctors. We have long wanted to have local manufacturing in Africa, but did not want it to compromise our core values of quality, affordability, and availability. The decision to set up our first African plant in Nigeria was based on the potential of the market, where we envisage our business to grow significantly in the next five years, and the resources available in the country. The first brick of the factory was laid in November 2019, and we will complete the plant by December 2020. Hopefully, moving forward the government and different bodies will continue to take steps to encourage further investments in the country. The financing for the facility came from a significant equity investment from the group supported by a loan from Nigeria’s Bank of Industry.

“Our qualified team on the ground is spread across the length and breadth of the country.”

How will the new plant change operations for Shalina and the sector?

Shalina Healthcare has large ambitions, and local manufacturing is a key part of that. We want to support the local economy not just through the quality of our products but through jobs and investment. In Nigeria, the authorities seek to encourage investment in the pharmaceutical space by offering reduced import tariffs for manufacturers or banning imports. With this plant, we can manufacture locally and remain competitive vis-à-vis Indian and Chinese imports, while providing our customers with essential medication that they can trust. With a WHO-GMP certification, we will be manufacturing at a very high quality, and we want our customers to be proud of the Made in Nigeria badge.

How will Nigeria progress in local manufacturing in the short term?

We hope to see further incentives provided by the Nigerian authorities to both encourage local manufacturing and reward those who have already invested. We want to see a self-sufficient Nigerian pharma market with strong regulation and everyone manufacturing to the same standards we set of ourselves. This will happen long term, though in the short term, we expect a continuation of the same challenges faced to date—macroeconomic volatility, lack of infrastructure, insufficient incentives, competition from lower quality imports and local companies, and unfortunately the ongoing presence of counterfeits.

How do you compete against counterfeit drugs available at low cost?

Low-cost counterfeits are found across the continent and are a problem for all pharmaceutical companies and end consumers. However, as we only sell to sub-Saharan Africa, we are more focused on addressing these fakes than other companies exporting from India