A Partnership Beyond Trade: India and Uzbekistan in Pharmaceuticals

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — India and Uzbekistan are expanding cooperation in the pharmaceutical sector amid growing investments and healthcare reforms, aiming to improve the accessibility and quality of medicines and strengthen industrial cooperation between the two countries.

A Bond Forged Through Centuries, Reimagined for Tomorrow

The relationship between India and Uzbekistan is not a product of recent diplomacy. For centuries, our civilisations have exchanged commodities, philosophies, scholarship, and remedies along the historic trade corridors that once stitched Asia into a single living tapestry. Healers, savants, and merchants traversed the very pathways that now sustain our modern commerce. Upon this enduring civilisational foundation, the contemporary partnership in pharmaceuticals is being meaningfully reconstructed.

This partnership, however, must be understood for what it genuinely represents. It is not merely a commercial engagement between two sovereign nations. It is a shared and solemn commitment to a profoundly human cause: the accessibility, affordability, and quality of medicines for the citizens we serve. It is a partnership of shared values, a confluence of common heritage, and above all, an alliance dedicated to the wellbeing of our peoples and the dignity of their lives.

Uzbekistan: On the Path of Rapid Transformation

I have been visiting Tashkent for over fifteen years, and I have personally witnessed the tremendous transformation of the country’s infrastructure, governance, financial sector, and indeed its pharmaceutical sector. Uzbekistan has, since decades, established itself as a progressive society. The Uzbekistan I have recently experienced, is remarkably stronger and vibrant version of itself, in which good governance, transparency, and a manifest zeal to grow are clearly evident. With the second largest population in the region after Russia, and possibly the highest GDP growth, Uzbekistan presents itself as an ideal destination for investment, more particularly in the pharmaceutical space. Significant investments have already been undertaken by Indian entrepreneurs and companies in Uzbekistan, and many more remain in the pipeline. India continues to play an important role as both an investment partner and a trade partner with Uzbekistan in pharmaceuticals. A strong push of reforms in the healthcare sector comes with goals of bringing affordability to quality medicines and access to newest medicines and treatments for the Uzbekistan population. In both cases, India stands as an important partner for Uzbekistan in this effort.

Uzbekistan: The Strategic Heart of Central Asia

Uzbekistan occupies a position of singular importance within the Central Asian region. With a population exceeding thirty eight million and an economy demonstrating remarkable dynamism, it stands as the most significant market to watch in the region. Government driven healthcare reforms, a growing population, an expanding economy, and rising healthcare requirements collectively present a compelling opportunity for Indian pharmaceutical and allied enterprises.

Our two nations complement each other naturally in their respective strengths. Where India offers scale, capability, and accumulated expertise, Uzbekistan offers vision, ambition, and a citizenry deserving of the finest healthcare outcomes that modern medicine can deliver.

India: The Pharmacy of the World

Over recent decades, India has earned a distinction unmatched in the global health ecosystem. It is widely and rightly acknowledged as the Pharmacy of the World. Indian pharmaceutical products reach more than two hundred nations, sustaining lives across every continent, climate, and demographic.

This recognition is not rhetorical. It rests upon measurable, verifiable capability. The Indian pharmaceutical industry possesses end to end competence spanning clinical research, active pharmaceutical ingredient development, formulation development, API manufacturing, and formulation manufacturing. India hosts the highest number of US FDA approved facilities outside the United States, a substantial number of EU GMP certified plants, and over three thousand WHO GMP compliant sites. These figures represent not abstract milestones but an industrial infrastructure of unparalleled depth and discipline.

Indian pharmaceutical companies are amongst the foremost suppliers of drugs and vaccines to the WHO, UNICEF, and other multilateral health institutions. In the preceding year, more than forty percent of Abbreviated New Drug Applications approved in the United States originated from Indian enterprises. Furthermore, more than forty percent of prescriptions dispensed in the United States contain at least one Indian product. These statistics convey a fundamental truth: the world relies on India for its medicines.

Equally consequential is the question of affordability. Indian pharmaceuticals are regarded as the most affordable quality medicines in the off patented segment. Independent research indicates that Indian medicines are the most affordable medicines globally. This rare convergence of quality and affordability has preserved innumerable lives, and continues to do so with each passing day.

The Pillars of Indian Excellence

The strength of Indian pharmaceuticals rests upon several interlocking pillars. The nation possesses profound expertise in chemistry and formulation development. It maintains a substantial pool of patents available for clinical research and benefits from an academic infrastructure comprising a vast network of pharmacy, medical, and allied institutions. Its regulatory framework is robust and continuously evolving, and a significant number of Indian companies hold approvals from the most stringent global regulatory authorities. Collectively, these factors enable India to serve over twenty percent of the global pharmaceutical supply chain by volume.

From Volume Leadership to Value Leadership

India is now undertaking a deliberate and historic transformation. While preserving its leadership in volume, the Indian pharmaceutical industry is steadily ascending towards value leadership through innovation and research. The Government of India has demonstrated extraordinary resolve in supporting this transition.

Approximately USD eleven billion has been earmarked by the Indian Government for supporting and catalysing innovation across sectors. In biopharmaceutical research, the most recent budget allocated 1.1 billion dollars under the Biopharma Shakti scheme. The Promotion of Research and Innovation in Pharmaceutical and Medtech sector, known as PRIP, offers further support of upwards of six hundred and fifty million dollars. Additional substantial allocations have been directed towards quality upgradation across the industry.

The Indian pharmaceutical industry has begun collaborating closely with academic institutions, government departments, medical professionals, contract research organisations, and development centres. The collective objective is both ambitious and attainable: the development of one hundred innovative products by the year 2047.

The numbers reflect this trajectory. The Indian pharmaceutical industry currently stands at USD 60 billion, comprising USD 30 billion in exports and an equivalent value in the domestic market. It is projected to ascend to USD 100 billion by 2030 and to USD 500 billion by 2047. This trajectory is firmly aligned with the vision of the Honourable Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi ji, for a developed India by 2047, to which the pharmaceutical industry aspires to be a meaningful contributor.

Avenues of Meaningful Collaboration

The pathways for partnership are numerous and substantive. The Indian pharmaceutical industry intends to continue its efforts in moderating treatment costs in Uzbekistan through the supply of cost effective medicines and the introduction of affordability into healthcare delivery. Indian entrepreneurs have already invested in several manufacturing facilities, some are already in operation, and some are under commissioning. This shows India’s deep-rooted commitment and confidence in Uzbekistan. Beyond pharmaceuticals, Indian entrepreneurs can extend considerable investments in establishing hospitals and allied healthcare facilities.

India can further support the development of local pharmaceutical manufacturing in Uzbekistan through the supply of manufacturing and packaging machinery, HVAC systems, water systems, effluent treatment plants, and other supporting infrastructure. The Indian engineering industry, mature and globally respected, stands prepared to assist. Additionally, India's leadership in information technology and artificial intelligence offers further dimensions of cooperation that can accelerate Uzbekistan's progress in healthcare technology and digital health solutions.

A Shared Vision for the Future

There are innumerable arenas in which India and Uzbekistan may collaborate within the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors. The unifying goal is unambiguous and noble: ensuring the affordability and availability of quality medicines and latest treatments for the citizens of Uzbekistan.

The Indian Drugs Manufacturers Association stands ready and earnestly committed to play a supporting role in this journey. We approach this partnership with humility, sincerity, and the conviction that what we build together shall outlast us, serving generations yet to come. The bonds forged centuries ago between our peoples now find their renewed expression in the most human of endeavours: the preservation and elevation of life itself.

Dr. Viranchi Shah
The author is the National Spokesperson and Immediate Past President of the Indian Drugs Manufacturers Association (IDMA)