National Strategy for Development of Vietnam's Pharmaceutical Industry to 2030

The Government has just approved the National Strategy for the Development of the Vietnamese Pharmaceutical Industry to 2030 and Vision to 2045. With the view of ensuring proactive and timely supply of quality, safe, effective drugs at reasonable costs for the needs of disease prevention, treatment, overcoming the consequences of natural disasters, catastrophes, public health incidents and other urgent drug needs, meeting the requirements of socio-economic development, ensuring national defense and security. Developing the Vietnamese pharmaceutical industry sustainably, gradually moving towards modernization, focusing on ensuring drug security; developing the pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical chemistry industry, domestically produced medicinal materials, increasing export value and deeply integrating into the global pharmaceutical supply chain.

Vietnam has the potential to become a regional pharmaceutical and healthcare hub with the ability to export pharmaceuticals to countries in the ASEAN region. Illustrative photo

Thereby, identifying the Vietnamese pharmaceutical industry as a spearhead industry with prioritized resources and strong enough incentive mechanisms and policies for development. Along with developing a professional, modern, effective and strictly managed system of drug production, distribution and supply; improving the efficiency of drug supply and distribution of domestic enterprises in accordance with international commitments, as well as ensuring the rational, safe and effective use of drugs through a system of synchronous measures, focusing on promoting and improving the capacity and efficiency of clinical pharmacy activities, pharmacovigilance and building a digital pharmaceutical data ecosystem.

With the goal of developing the Vietnamese pharmaceutical industry to be on par with advanced countries in the region, ensuring access to medicine for people at reasonable costs; improving research capacity and applying available technology to produce generic drugs, drugs with new and modern dosage forms, aiming to become a center for manufacturing/technology transfer of generic drugs in the ASEAN region, striving to develop the domestic pharmaceutical industry to reach level 4 according to WHO classification; developing medicinal herbs, medicines and products from domestic medicinal herbs into a field of producing high-quality and high-value goods; promoting the production of pharmaceutical ingredients; optimizing the use of drugs.

Illustration photo source Internet

Specifically, by 2030, strive to have 100% of drugs proactively and promptly supplied for disease prevention and treatment needs; ensure drug security, meet national defense and security requirements, prevent and control epidemics, overcome the consequences of natural disasters, catastrophes, public health incidents and other urgent needs for drugs; domestically produced drugs strive to meet about 80% of usage needs and 70% of market value. Continue to strive to achieve the goal of producing 20% ​​of raw material needs for domestic drug production. Domestically produced vaccines meet 100% of the needs for expanded immunization and 30% of the needs for service immunization.

Thereby striving to become a center for high-value pharmaceutical production in the region. Receiving technology transfer, processing with coordinated technology transfer to produce at least 100 original pharmaceutical drugs, vaccines, biological products including similar biological products and some drugs that Vietnam has not yet produced. Building 08 sustainable exploitation areas of natural medicinal herbs and 02-05 large-scale medicinal herb cultivation and production areas. Restoring, importing, transplanting, and developing 10-15 medicinal plant species imported in large quantities. 100% of medicinal raw materials are standardized in extracts, essential oils, and medicinal powders to serve domestic drug production. Achieving WHO level 3 certification or higher on the capacity of state management agencies for chemical pharmaceuticals, maintaining and improving WHO certification on the capacity of state management agencies for vaccines.

Sustainably maintain the rate of 100% of drug trading establishments meeting good practice standards; strive for 100% of drug testing, vaccine and biological product testing establishments to meet good laboratory practice (GLP) standards; 20% of drug manufacturing establishments to meet EU-GMP, PICs-GMP or equivalent standards. Strive to have 30% of generic drugs (except drugs with local effects, drugs with systemic effects that have bioequivalent properties to reference drugs) produced domestically and imported with circulation registration certificates assessed as bioequivalent; 100% of drugs in circulation on the market are fully monitored and managed for effectiveness and safety according to regulations of the Ministry of Health, 100% of medical examination and treatment establishments with drug use activities organize and implement clinical pharmacy activities. The ratio of clinical pharmacy staff reaches 01 person/100 inpatient beds and 02 people/1,000 prescriptions dispensed to outpatients with insurance cards in a day. Provide good quality pharmaceutical care services.

Complete the digital transformation of the pharmaceutical industry; digitize 100% of information and data on drugs licensed for circulation in Vietnam and update them in the Pharmaceutical Industry Data Bank; 100% of drug manufacturing, wholesale, import-export and retail establishments nationwide are connected; ensure the maintenance of 100% of level 4 online public services in the pharmaceutical sector integrated into the National Public Service Portal; deploy artificial intelligence applications in pharmaceutical activities, achieving a rate of 4.0 pharmacists/10,000 people, of which pharmacists trained in clinical pharmacy must reach at least 20%.

At the same time, by 2045, domestically produced drugs will meet domestic demand and increase export value, deeply integrate into the global supply chain; proactively produce specialized drugs, new drugs, original branded drugs, vaccines, biological products and pharmaceutical ingredients; have original branded drugs from domestic medicinal materials that are researched, produced and copyrighted. Strive for the total value of the pharmaceutical industry to contribute to GDP of over 20 billion USD. The system of drug testing, distribution, clinical pharmacy, drug information and pharmacovigilance will reach the same level as advanced countries in the world./.

Cong Dao