In a renewed push to expand its export base, Sri Lanka is turning its focus towards pharmaceuticals, aiming to establish the country as a credible player in the global pharmaceutical market. This goal was at the heart of a recent high-level dialogue between the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) and the Sri Lanka Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Association (SLPMA), as stakeholders came together to outline strategies to strengthen the industry and overcome key regulatory and operational bottlenecks.
The local pharmaceutical manufacturing sector, classified as an emerging industry, has already attracted investments exceeding Rs. 100 billion over the past decade. Sri Lanka now hosts around 25 manufacturers, meeting approximately 15% of the country’s domestic pharmaceutical requirements. More than 80% of their production is directed to the Government’s Medical Supplies Division. In 2023, pharmaceutical exports totaled $8.07 million — a modest figure, but one that signals increasing global interest.
The discussion brought together several key industry players including SLPMA President Nalin Kannangara, Senior Vice President Dinesh Athapaththu, Vice President Viraj Manatunga, and executives from leading firms such as Navesta Pharmaceuticals, Sands Active Ltd., and Gamma Interpharm Ltd.
Highlighting the sector’s potential, Kannangara noted that the 23 member companies of SLPMA collectively supply around 35% of the pharmaceutical needs of government hospitals and locally produce over 235 products. However, he cautioned that global expansion is constrained by the need to comply with rigorous international regulatory standards — a major hurdle in the highly controlled pharmaceutical landscape.
To tackle this, Kannangara called for the extension of the Government’s buyback agreement, which had enabled the dramatic scale-up from just 15 locally made products in 2015 to 235 by 2025. Extending this agreement would help boost production volumes, lower unit costs, and significantly improve global competitiveness.
The stakeholders also highlighted the complexity involved in exporting pharmaceuticals compared to other goods. Exporting medicines typically requires time-consuming and costly registration processes with foreign medical regulatory authorities. Additionally, documentation such as Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) certificates and product registration papers must be authenticated by the respective embassies in Sri Lanka. To ease this process, the industry called for stronger institutional support from the government.
Vice President Manatunga, who also chairs the EDB’s Pharmaceutical Advisory Committee, emphasized the need for a clear and cohesive national strategy for the sector. He noted the EDB’s collaboration with the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO) in crafting a strategic roadmap — now in its final stages — under an Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded initiative.
He stressed that swift implementation of this strategy is essential to unlocking the industry’s potential for export-led growth.
Concluding the meeting, EDB Chairman and CEO Mangala Wijesinghe urged industry players to submit their key challenges for consideration at the upcoming Export Development Council of Ministers (EDCM) meeting, chaired by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. This, he said, would ensure high-level policy intervention to elevate Sri Lanka’s pharmaceutical industry onto the global stage..
