Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia’s response to COVID-19 stands up well to international comparisons in both the MENA region and globally. In recent conversation with PharmaBoardroom, Fahad Al Shebel, CEO of national medicine procurement body NUPCO, outlines some of the fundamentals behind this success story.   Extreme, But Effective, Measures Saudi Arabia took…

Saudi Arabia Few stakeholders are better placed to assess the landscape for rare disease therapies across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region than Karim Smaira and Kamel Ghammachi of Genpharm, an entrepreneurial success story that now provides market access and marketing solutions for rare disease products across the region.  …

Saudi Arabia As the Saudi pharma market – worth approximately USD 8.2 billion – continues to grow, so does the need for pharma companies to efficiently distribute their medicines inside the Kingdom. Here, we present four of the main trends at play in the Saudi distribution landscape, from market consolidation to centralised…

Saudi Arabia In a recent royal decree, Saudi Arabia has appointed Fahad Al-Jalajel as its Minister of Health, replacing Dr Tawfiz Al-Rabia who had served since 2016. Here, we give a quick run-through of Al-Jalajel’s career thus far.   The holder of a bachelor’s degree in computer science from King Saud University,…

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Vision 2030 economic transformation plan aims at transitioning the Middle East’s largest economy away from an over-reliance on fossil fuels and into a more diversified modern nation. This transition is being felt especially keenly in healthcare, where the Ministry of Health’s functions are shifting with the aim…

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia has one of the highest rates of diabetes in the world – over 17 percent of the population are diabetic – making the supply of insulin products a matter of significant national interest. To this end, the recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between historic US diabetes leader…

Global The global push to vaccinate populations against COVID-19 has played out differently in different geographies, with a yawning gap still existing between vaccination rates in developed and developing economies and vaccine hesitancy and scepticism rife in certain countries. Here, three country managers from Pfizer – which is aiming to manufacture…

Saudi Arabia Looking to diversify its economy while simultaneously improving its healthcare system, Saudi Arabia has been rolling out incentives for international companies to invest in local manufacturing. Here are three trends that the Kingdom hopes will catch the attention of global biopharma and generics investors.   With the aim of creating…

Saudi Arabia Having commenced his journey with American giant Lilly in 2008, and after almost eight years working in the company’s Japan organization, mostly on digital marketing, Dimitri Livadas crossed the Pacific Ocean to work in Lilly’s home market and the largest pharma market in the world, the United States, first in…

Saudi Arabia Clinical trials provide a pathway to innovation for clinicians and patients in countries like Saudi Arabia and form a key element of the country’s Vision 2030 national plan. As Saudi transitions away from oil towards becoming a knowledge-based economy, it is hoping to attract ever more international pharma companies to…

Saudi Arabia As part of Saudi Arabia’s ambitious ‘Vision 2030’ economic transformation plan, the country has centralised the public procurement of medications through the National Unified Procurement Company for Medical Supplies (NUPCO). Here, some of the Kingdom’s most prominent pharma leaders weigh in on the impact of this new system for their…

Saudi Arabia 33-year pharma industry veteran Georg Schroeckenfuchs currently heads up the vast Middle East & Africa (MEA) region for Swiss behemoth Novartis, overseeing 19 countries, over 1800 employees, and more than USD 900 million in revenues. In a recent conversation within the frame of PharmaBoardroom’s current focus on Saudi Arabia, the…