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South Africa’s pharmaceutical manufacturers have secured a commitment from the health department to jointly review regulations governing private-sector medicine prices.The industry has long complained they are not applied clearly and consistently.The agreement was reached at a meeting convened earlier this week in response to problems recently aired in parliament by local drugmakers, who painted a picture of an industry in crisis. The Pharmaceutical Task Group (PTG), representing four industry associations, and the Black Pharmaceutical Industry Association (BPIA) told MPs that several companies had closed and 2,500 jobs had been lost in the past 18 months. In a joint statement issued after Tuesday’s meeting, the health department and industry associations said there had been a “frank and productive exchange” on the pressures facing the sector, including pricing regulations, heightened geopolitical uncertainty and global supply-chain disruptions. The industry spelt out the impact of current conditions, while the government outlined the direction of its evolving localisation roadmap, they said. They agreed to set up a structured mechanism to discuss issues such as medicines policy, pricing, regulation, localisation and sustainable supply. Regular meetings will be held to track agreed action and enable greater collaboration between government and industry, they said.Acting health director-general Nicholas Crisp led a government team with officials from the departments that constitute the interministerial committee on local pharmaceutical production previously convened by President Cyril Ramaphosa. The committee was set up to co-ordinate national efforts to support domestic drug manufacturing and reduce reliance on imported medicines and active pharmaceutical ingredients. It includes the National Treasury and the departments of health, trade, industry & competition, and science & innovation. The meeting included top executives from drug companies, the Competition Commission, the SA Health Products Regulatory Authority and industry associations for pharmaceutical manufacturers. Representatives from the World Bank, the PTG and BPIA attended, with others from the Innovative Pharmaceutical Association South Africa (Ipasa), the Self-Care Association of SA (SCA), Pharmaceuticals Made in SA (Pharmisa), and Generic and Biosimilar Medicines of Southern Africa (GBMSA). The PTG told parliament on August 6 that the health department’s narrow focus on price was squeezing local pharmaceutical manufacturers out of state tenders and was at odds with broader government objectives to grow the domestic industry and improve South Africa’s security of supply. The department subsequently defended its position, accusing the PTG of misleading parliament with a subjective analysis of tender awards that contradicted its own assessment. The BPIA also criticised the health department, saying black pharmaceutical professionals had not been given sufficient government support to make inroads into the industry. PTG chair Stavros Nicolaou welcomed health minister Aaron Motsoaledi’s swift response to the problems aired in parliament. “It was a very good meeting,” he said, emphasising the government had acknowledged there were challenges that needed to be addressed before the sector roadmap was finalised. Crisp said the tone of the meeting was “very positive”. The health department was sensitive to the issues facing the local pharmaceutical manufacturing sector and had agreed to prioritise a review of the single exit price (SEP) increase granted earlier this year, he said.The SEP is the regulated price at which manufacturers sell medicines in the private sector. Manufacturers previously complained that the 1.4% price increase granted for 2026 was significantly below consumer price inflation and that the margin pressure this created has been compounded by rising input costs triggered by the war in the Middle East. Crisp said work on the localisation roadmap for the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector was at an advanced stage but had yet to be costed and submitted to the cabinet. Update: August 20 206This article has been updated with new information.Business Day
