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United Arab Emirates Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q4 2008

http://www.companiesandmarkets.com/Summary-Market-Report/united-arab-emirates-pharmaceuticals-and-healthcare-report-q4-2008-53221.asp

Report Summary

BMI estimates that the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) drug market expenditure was AED2.71bn (US$0.74bn) in 2007. Over the forecast period (2008-2012), we expect growth to average 8.8% year-onyear (y-o-y), with the market reaching a value of AED4.13bn (US$1.12bn) by the end of 2012.

Over the next five years, there are likely to be major structural changes in the way in which healthcare is provided in the UAE. Duabi and Abu Dhabi have already unveiled universal health insurance models during 2008, and the Ministry of Health is hoping to announce a system which includes the whole of the UAE in the near future.

In BMI’s updated Business Environment Rankings for the Middle East and Africa, the UAE remains top of the table by some distance of 15 regional markets surveyed. Although its drug expenditure is notably lower than that of Saudi Arabia, the UAE drug market’s high growth potential and the stable regulatory and political environment offer a favourable business location. This view continues to be born out, with US-based Pfizer becoming the latest multinational drugmaker to choose the UAE as its regional headquarters.

Exchange rates have caused problems in the UAE’s import reliant drug market. In response to the weak dirham against the euro, the UAE's Ministry of Health announced that the prices of medicines imported from eurozone countries will be increased, with effect from October 15. The price of drugs to treat chronic diseases will increase by 5.85% and the price of non-chronic disease medicines will increase by 21.4%; prices will be reviewed again in two years time. Import prices will continue to be calculated by considering the price of the drug in the country of origin and in comparable neighbouring countries, and the pricing calculation will also be reviewed every two years.

While most of the UAE’s pharmaceutical needs are supplied by imports, the country’s domestic pharmaceutical industy continues to expand its international footprint. Gulf Pharmaceutical Industries (Julphar) is set to open a number of international plants. Manufacturing operations in Afghanistan are scheduled to begin in late 2008; plants in Sudan and Morocco should open in 2009; and plants in Yemen, Iran and Lebanon should open in 2010. Meanwhile, Globalpharma recently received good manufacturing practice (GMP) certification from South Africa’s Medicines Control Council (MCC).

Table of Contents

Executive Summary .........5
United Arab Emirates Pharmaceuticals And Healthcare Industry SWOT ............................................................................................................. 6
United Arab Emirates Political SWOT .................................. 8
United Arab Emirates Economic SWOT ................................ 9
United Arab Emirates Business Environment SWOT........... 10
Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings ..............................................11
Table: Middle East And Africa Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings ................................................................................................. 11
Limits To Potential Returns ................................................. 11
Risks To Realisation Of Returns .......................................... 12
Market Summary ............13
Regulatory Environment ..........................................15
Recent Regulatory Developments ........................................ 15
Pharmaceutical Advertising................................................. 17
Intellectual Property Regime ............................................... 17
Counterfeit Medicines.......................................................... 18
Pricing And Reimbursement Regime.................................... 19
Table: Profit Margins For Medicines In The UAE .............. 20
Price Cuts ............................................................................ 20
Recent Pricing And Reimbursement Developments ............. 21
Regional Harmonisation...................................................... 23
Industry Trends And Developments .......................................25
Epidemiology....................................................................... 25
Healthcare Sector ................................................................ 26
Recent Healthcare Sector Developments ............................. 28
Health Insurance ................................................................. 29
Table: DHA Healthcarre System Implementation Timeline . 31
Expatriate Worker Insurance............................................... 32
Table: National Health Insurance Company - Available 32
Health Insurance Industry Developments ............................ 33
Health Tourism.................................................................... 34
Prescribing Practices .......................................................... 35
Domestic Pharmaceutical Sector......................................... 35
Foreign Companies.............................................................. 37
Company Developments....................................................... 37
Pharmaceutical Distribution and Retail .............................. 38
Recent Developments in Pharmaceutical Distribution and Retail ....................................................................................................................... 39
Research And Development ................................................. 40
DuBiotech............................................................................ 41
Table: Incentives For Companies To Move To DuBiotech .. 41
Complementary and Traditional Medicine .......................... 42
Medical Devices................................................................... 43
Table: The UAE's Medical Device Market, 2006-2012 (US$bn unless otherwise stated).................................................................................... 46
Recent Developments In The Medical Devices Market ........ 46
Industry Forecast Scenario ..............................................................47
Overall Market Forecast...................................................... 47
Table: Drug Expenditure And Prescription Market Indicators, 2006-2012 (AEDmn unless otherwise stated).................................................... 48
Key Growth Factors - Industry............................................ 49
Key Growth Factors - Industry............................................ 49
Table: Health Expenditure Trends, 2006-2012.................... 50
Macroeconomic Scenario .................................................... 51
Table: United Arab Emirates - Economic Activity............... 53
Patented Market Forecasts .................................................. 54
Table: Patented Drug Market Trends, 2006-2012 (US$bn unless otherwise stated)............................................................................................ 55
Generics Market Forecast ................................................... 56
Table: Generics And Patented Drug Market Indicators, 2006-2012.................................................................................................................... 56
OTC Market Forecast.......................................................... 57
Table: OTC Drug Market Trends (AEDmn unless otherwise stated) ................................................................................................................... 58
-Imports/Exports Forecasts.................................................. 59
-Imports/Exports Forecasts.................................................. 59
Table: Pharmaceutical Import/Export Trends (US$mn) ...... 60
Other Healthcare Forecasts................................................. 61
Table: Other Healthcare Data, 2006-2012.......................... 61
Key Risks To BMI's Forecast Scenario................................ 62
Competitive Landscape...........................................63
Table: Key Players In The UAE's Pharmaceutical Market, 2007........................................................................................................................ 63
Company Profiles...........64
Leading Foreign Companies..................................................... 64
GlaxoSmithKline.................................................................. 64
Pfizer ................................................................................... 66
Novartis ............................................................................... 68
Johnson & Johnson (J&J) ................................................... 71
Sanofi-Aventis...................................................................... 73
Abbott Laboratories............................................................. 74
Merck & Co ......................................................................... 76
Indigenous Manufacturers ........................................................ 78
Gulf Pharmaceutical Industries (Julphar) ........................... 78
Globalpharma...................................................................... 82
Modern Pharmaceutical Company (MPC) .......................... 84
NeoPharma.......................................................................... 85
BMI Forecast Modelling...........................................87
How We Generate Our Pharmaceutical Industry Forecasts ..... 87
Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings Methodology .. 87
Ratings Overview................................................................. 88
Table: Pharmaceutical Business Environment Indicators ... 89
Weighting............................................................................. 90
Table: Weighting Of Components........................................ 90
Sources ..................................................................................... 90