Pharmexcil plans business delegation to CIS nations in Jan

Over half a dozen Gujarat companies to be part of delegation

With an eye on higher margins and export potential that countries in East Europe offer, Gujarat-based mid-sized pharmaceutical companies are joining a business delegation to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) later this month.

The Pharmaecutical Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) is sending a business delegation to three CIS countries, Armenia, Georgia and Uzbekistan from January 27 to February 6. Of the twelve CIS countries, Georgia, Uzebkistan and Armenia offer the highest potential after Russia. P V Appaji, director general of Pharmexcil confirmed the development.

Around six to seven local firms are going to these countries as a part of the trade delegation, informed Chirag Doshi, chairman of the Gujarat State Board of the Indian Drug Manufacturers Association (IDMA).

He added that, "Exports to the CIS nations from Gujarat-based pharmaceutical companies is on the rise in the last few years. At present, approximately around 20-25 per cent of the exports from Gujarat go to these countries."

According to industry estimates, the state had exported pharma products worth Rs 12,000-13,000 crore last fiscal, and during the first half of the current fiscal the state has exported pharma products worth Rs 7,000 crore.

"Exports to the CIS nations is growing at 15-18 per cent per year and this is higher than the rate of growth to other parts of the globe, as CIS is still an emerging market for Indian pharma companies," Doshi explained.

The major countries in the CIS for pharma exports are Uzbekistan, Georgia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan among others.

As per data from the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS) pharma exports from India to Armenia has increased from Rs 2.7 crore in 2010-11 to Rs 5.21 crore in 2012-13. Similarly, exports to Georgia and Uzbekistan have increased from Rs 25.86 crore to Rs 38.98 crore and Rs 155.5 crore to Rs 219.8 crore respectively during the same period.

Off late, small and medium sized companies in Gujarat are focussing on exports as it offers better margins compared to domestic sales.

And moreover, while overall exports frompharma SMEs is growing by 12-15 per cent, exports to emerging markets is growing at 30-35 per cent, as these markets are relatively easier to enter in terms of regulatory issues.