While 97% of demand for finished-dosage forms in Bangladesh is met by local manufacturers, the domestic industry remains largely dependent on raw materials imported from abroad, from countries such as China and India. In a strategy designed to capitalise on several national advantages – not least labour costs that are estimated to be 30% to 50% below those in China and India – Bangladesh’s government is looking to make the country more self-sufficient for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) as part of a broader identification of pharmaceuticals as a key growth industry.
To that end, the government has established an API industrial park, a special economic zone (SEZ) at Munshiganj, 37km from...
