The Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) has received a proposal from Guyana to collaborate with Indian pharmaceutical companies to export cancer drugs to Guyana.
The business opportunity will help overcome the registration difficulties and also generate significant amount of business, as the local company is targeting the whole CARICOM region with 15 countries. It would also help Indian companies to create an imprint in this region with immense future potential.
Director general, Pharmexcil.
The proposed cancer care medications intended for collaboration are fluorouracil, androcur, bleomycin, capecitabine, carboplatin, cisplatin, cyclophosphamide, docetaxel, doxorubicin/adriamycin, erythropoetin, etoposide, filgastrim, gemcitabin, herceptin, ifosfamide, imatinib, letrozole, leucovorin, leuprolide, melphalan, methotrexate, ondansteron, oxaliplatin, paclitaxel, and tamoxifen.
“Members may be kindly aware of the documentation/registration difficulties faced by the Indian pharma manufacturers/exporters, while exporting Indian pharmaceuticals into Guyana and other CARICOM countries. It is to be noted that this region basically follow the CARPHA regulations and the exporters are required to go with CARPHA guidelines, which means if CARPHA approval is obtained, those medicines can be imported to all 15 CARICOM countries,” said Uday Bhaskar, director general, Pharmexcil.
The local companies in Guyana propose to form a legal partnership, whereby this partnership will be the authorised distributor of these pharmaceuticals for the whole CARICOM region.
Bhaskar further added, “It is suggested that oncology medicine is a good starting point for this venture. Further, the local company is willing to apply and arrange CARPHA approvals for these medications for use in the CARICOM Region.”
CARICOM stands for Caribbean Community and Common Market and is defined as an organisation made up of 15 Caribbean nations to promote economic integration among members.
The CARICOM member states are Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat (a British overseas territory in the Leeward Islands), Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.
