KABUL (SW) – A medicine production factory labelled “Life Pearl Pharma” said to be meeting international standards has begun operating in Hodkhil area of Kabul city.
The officials of this pharmaceutical factory say that 20 million dollars were spent in the construction of this factory and 50 types of medicine are currently produced in this factory.
Ahmadullah Kochi, the head of this pharmaceutical factory, said: “We produce one and a half million tablets, one million capsules, and 100,000 bottles of syrup in 24 hourse.”
Officials at the Ministry of Public Health say that Afghan citizens spend a billion dollars annually to buy different medicine in the country.
Abdul Bari Omar, director of food and drug affairs at the ministry, said that currently Afghanistan has reached 20-25% self-sufficiency in medicine production.
He added: “We ask the private sector to jointly create a large drug factory in the country that will make all the drugs that are produced in the world for various diseases. And the government helps in land distribution and electricity supply.”
Officials in the Ministry of Public Health want this drug factory to produce high-quality medicine at a reasonable price for the citizens.
On the other hand, Noorjalal Jalali, acting minister of public health, emphasized that the merchants who smuggle medicine into the country to refrain from doing so. “We ask the brothers who smuggle low-quality drugs into the country not to oppress the people and stop doing this.”
According to the statistics of the Ministry of Public Health, there are currently more than 95 drug manufacturing factories operating in the country, but still, many medicines needed by citizens are imported from outside.
