Domestic manufacturers and the Ministry of Health discussed ways to strengthen the pharmaceutical market.
A meeting was held at SK-Pharmacia LLC, attended by domestic manufacturers, associations, and representatives of the Ministry of Health, to discuss the development of Kazakhstan's pharmaceutical industry.
Nurlybek Asylbekov, Head of the Unified Distributor, reported that 87 long-term contracts are currently in effect between SK-Pharmacia LLC and 32 domestic manufacturers for the supply of 2,037 types of medicines and medical devices.
The share of domestically produced drugs in procurement for 2025 was 32.1%, with 78% of these purchases (134.2 billion tenge) made under long-term contracts. From 2009 to 2025, there was a steady increase in the share of Kazakhstani drugs in the Single Distributor's procurement. Most of these are secured through 10-year contracts with domestic manufacturers.
"It should be noted that special attention is being paid to ensuring the transparency of procurement procedures and preventing cartels and fraudulent production. The development of criteria for procurement through international organizations is being considered, as is monitoring domestic manufacturers after the investment period (five years). The Single Distributor will submit all these proposals to the authorized body for subsequent inclusion in the Ministry of Health's Procurement Rules," N. Asylbekov stated.
Industry associations, in turn, noted that no new long-term contracts for the supply of medicines and medical devices have been concluded over the past three years, which requires the attention of the authorized body.
Particular attention was paid to the implementation of the Roadmap for Increasing the Share of Domestic Medicines and Medical Devices to 50%. Participants presented a number of proposals regarding amendments to Rule No. 110, specifically, improving the evaluation criteria for long-term contracts, clarifying the conditions for including or excluding products from procurement lists of domestic manufacturers, and supporting the localization of contract manufacturing.
In addition, proposals were made regarding the development of rules and methods for determining the need for medications within the framework of the State Fund for Free Medical Care and the Compulsory Medical Insurance System, as well as the preparation and approval of a strategy for the development of the domestic pharmaceutical industry.