A new research on Bangladesh’s pharmaceutical industry suggests a boost of 15% per annum in the next five years. Salman F Rahman, the Vice Chairman of Beximco, says that the ever-expanding local market responsible for this development. Additionally, it’s also the new export ventures of pharmaceutical companies that are contributing to this boost. The hunch of the Beximco premier resonates with what the study proposes. LR Global, the asset management firm, which did this study, compares it to India’s pharmaceutical sector that has increased 30 times in a span of two decades.

Currently, Bangladesh’s pharma companies satiate 98% of the country’s demand and export life-saving drugs to more than 100 countries. Exports to Sri Lanka have seen a sharp hike in the financial year of 2017. The sales figure for the financial year 2015-16 totaled to $30.44 million. The current figure is $42.24 million, an increment of 38.76%. The improvement also beats Pakistan’s pharmaceutical sector.

A morbid estimate, but Bangladesh's senior population will rise by 25% by 2036. With it, the drug purchasing power will also be affected by Bangladesh’s entry into the club of middle-income states. Healthcare organizations are promoting common drugs by the dozen. This is the opportunity that Bangladesh can use to emerge as a pharmaceutical leader. Capitalization on this trend can hear the international market.

Bangladesh’s pharmaceutical sector is made up of local hotspots, such as Opsonin, Renata, Eskayef, Beximco, and Square Pharmaceuticals. Despite the huge market, Bangladesh has to rely heavily on imports for raw materials. Each year, raw material work Tk 4,700 crore is imported. Foreign multinational companies like Novo Nordisk and Radiant only occupy the market through some of their specialized products.

A pharmaceutical analyst explains, “Given the fact that local companies can manufacture quality products at affordable price, the oncology segment will surface as an attractive growth segment in the future.”

The pharmaceutical sector is getting competitive as more and more pharma companies are emerging. Recently, a Bangladesh high court banned 34 pharmaceuticals from producing drugs. If Bangladesh wishes to see itself in the top-tier of pharmaceutical producers, it has to size down the industry to its finest.