The life and health of people are at the forefront of Belarus’ national security. The pharmaceutical and microbiological industry plays a special role here. Over the years of independence, Belarus has come a long way: from a modest line-up to modern multidisciplinary production of complex medical drugs. In this episode of BelTA’s YouTube channel “After the Fact: Lukashenko’s Decisions” we will explain why Aleksandr Lukashenko insisted on the replacement of imported medicines and whether the government has been successful in implementing this strategy, why Belarus needed a vaccine center and what kind of trap we all fell into when, according to the president, “we have become more and more distanced from nature and its life-giving benefits.” What did the head of state warn private pharmacies about? What medicine does the Belarusian leader consider the most effective and the cheapest? A small spoiler: everyone has it at hand.

What medicines are produced in Belarus

Biotechnologies and pharmaceuticals have long been among the priorities for the Belarusian state. Just one fact: in monetary terms, more than half of the drugs in the country are domestically produced. Yet, the share of Belarusian drugs in pharmacies (in standard packages) is about 65%. Their share is rising. 

Belarus offers a number of unique drugs for the treatment of cancer, immune and cardiovascular diseases, antiviral and antibacterial drugs, as well as tools for the treatment of diseases of the musculoskeletal system, digestive tract, metabolism and others. But, of course, that wasn't always the case.

The history of the pharmaceutical industry in Belarus began 100 years ago. The country’s first chemical and pharmaceutical plant named after the First Five-Year Plan (the present Belmedpreparaty company) was launched in the 1920s. Originally it produced essentials: powders, ointments, mixtures. Over time, the product line-up expanded and the plant even began to export its goods to the countries friendly to the USSR in Europe, Asia and Cuba.

“Our company goes back to 1929. Much has been done since then.  Today we operate 12 main workshops and 6 auxiliary workshops. The company’s portfolio includes more than 300 drugs of various pharmacotherapeutic groups. First of all, these are drugs for cancer treatment. Our company has a fairly wide range of such products. Accordingly, from year to year, we are expanding our line-ups,” said Sergei Marchenko, Deputy Director General for Innovative Development at Belmedpreparaty.

The company has long been producing insulin. Since last year, we have been able to make them in a fairly convenient dosage form, in cartridges. These cartridges are used in injector pens. 

“In cooperation with a Russian company, we have also developed an analogue of insulin.  It's Aspart insulin. Work on other insulin analogues continues. Insulin analogues is our future.  Therefore, we will certainly be working to expand this line-up,” Sergei Marchenko said.

Milestones in the development of Belarus’ pharmaceutical industry 

With independence, the young country needed to reorganize this work. For comparison: Belarusian enterprises produce about 1,800 names of drugs of various pharmacotherapeutic groups today. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, only 105 types of medicines were produced in our country. That's 17 times less.

In 1992, the government established the Pharmaceutical and Microbiological Industry Committee. Its main task was to increase production, expand the range and improve the quality of domestic medicines.

The next stage in the development of the industry began in the 2000s. Aleksandr Lukashenko set a task to ramp up the share of domestic medicines on the Belarusian market to 50% in value terms. At that time Belarusian medicines accounted for under 25%; the rest had to be purchased abroad. The number doesn't seem small. But you don’t need tanks and missiles to conquer a country. It is enough to stop the supply of medicines. Therefore, the Belarusian government decided to focus on the pharmaceutical industry: it has become an important component of sovereignty and national security.

“We agreed that by the end of next year (i.e., by the end of the five-year plan), Belarusian-made medicines would hold at least 50% share. These medicines should meet world-class standards. We don’t need substandard products. Belarusian pharmaceutical production should be aligned with international requirements. We need to meet the domestic demand, because every year we spent at least half a billion in foreign currency on medicines. Therefore, it is necessary to carry on import substitution,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he met with the healthcare minister to receive his report. 

In 2011, Belarus began to adopt national programs to promote import-substituting production of pharmaceutical substances, finished medicines and diagnostic products, as well as programs seeking to advance the pharmaceutical industry as a whole. As a result, in 2011-2019, the total number of entities engaged in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products and medicines increased from 63 to 100, and the industrial output expanded eight times - from Br163 million to more than Br1.3 billion. From 60 to 100 new domestic medicines are registered in Belarus every year.

“Belarus is a welfare state, thus enhancing well-being of people is one of our key priorities. It will always be so. To this end, we upgrade public health infrastructure, provide healthcare facilities with the latest in equipment. We improve personnel qualifications and, most importantly, ramp up the production of domestic drugs. A strong foundation for the pharmaceutical industry’s growth has been established in Belarus. In 2010, I set the task to increase the share of Belarusian medicines on the domestic market to 50%. This is crucial for national security. We should provide the population with affordable, high-quality domestic medicines,” the head of state said at a meeting to discuss the state and prospects for the Belarusian pharmaceutical industry.

In 2017, the head of state ordered the creation of the Belpharmprom Holding Company with a view to bolstering the pharmaceutical and microbiological production. It has the country’s largest pharmaceutical companies under its umbrella. Today, it has nine enterprises: six manufacturers of medicines, one scientific organization, and one manufacturer of medical devices. The holding company has concluded cooperation agreements with two dozen more organizations.

The enterprises of the Belpharmprom system account for about a half of all medicines produced in Belarus and a half of the country’s pharmaceutical exports. The products of the affiliated organizations are sold in 25 countries around the world.

Why does Lukashenko demand keeping prices in check?

The president also keeps his tabs on prices in pharmacies. No one will be forced to work at a loss. Neither will anyone, especially retailers, be allowed to profiteer at the expense of people, the president insisted. 

“The government has recently decided to curb unjustified price rises. Listen, what is 10% VAT? It is nothing, but everyone started using it as a pretext to raise prices,” the head of state said as he was receiving a report by the chairman of the State Control Committee in March 2021.

“And some even raised them by 30%,” Vasily Gerasimov said.

“Right. This means that tough action is needed. We should have a look at both wholesalers and retailers. But the most important thing is medicines. We must not allow these deranged people to take advantage of people’s misfortunes to make money. None of them pitched in financially to help us fight Covid. The government was left alone to deal with it. The country has already spent a billion dollars on this from various sources. Did some pharmacy owners and others step in and offer us some money? No one did. Half of all pharmacies in our country are state-owned, and the other half are private businesses. If we fail to bring private pharmacies to their senses, the state-run pharmacies will come to the forefront. But health should not be a source of profit,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

Where are Belarusian medicines exported?

According to the Healthcare Ministry, Belarus’ pharmaceutical industry is a steadily growing sector. In 2024, the industry’s output approached Br2.5 billion (this is equivalent to over $800 million today). In actual prices, the output increased by more than 20%. Almost a third of the medicines were exported.

Belarusian enterprises also seek to tap into the markets of Southeast Asia, Latin America, Arab states, and developing countries in Africa. These regions are experiencing the fastest growth in medicine consumption and government healthcare spending. For example, last year, Belarusian pharmaceutical companies shipped their products to Saudi Arabia, Somalia, the UAE, and Qatar for the first time.

Belarus is actively developing its pharmaceutical sector through cooperation with various foreign partners, offering not only product supplies but also the establishment of joint ventures. Through such collaboration, the partners can not only help each other directly but also expand their economic reach to other markets.

One of the latest agreements of this kind was reached during the recent talks between the presidents of Belarus and Cuba. According to Aleksandr Lukashenko, a joint venture is expected to go online soon. It will manufacture Belarusian medicines for the Cuban market and other countries in the Caribbean region.

How much time does it take to develop and produce a medicine?

According to Sergei Marchenko, it takes at least three years for medicines to be approved for sale. Pharmaceutical formulation development involves designing and optimizing the composition of a drug to ensure its stability and compatibility of its components. In addition, all these components should be purchased in advance; the pharmaceutical and technological properties of each ingredient should be checked. “After we receive the finished product, we develop and validate quality control methods. A drug undergoes stability tests. This way we make sure that its quality will not deteriorate during the established shelf life. This is followed by a fairly lengthy procedure of state registration. After positive expert evaluations by pharmacologists and pharmacists on different parts of a registration dossier, a decision is made on whether to register a pharmaceutical product,” the Belmedpreparaty deputy director general said.

He recalled the old saying: All substances are poisons; there is none that is not a poison. The right dose differentiates a poison from a remedy. “Therefore, the safety requirements for medicines should be as comprehensive as possible in order to guarantee a safe and efficient product,” emphasized Sergei Marchenko.

What does Belarus need its own vaccines?

At the beginning of 2020, the Belarusian pharmaceutical industry faced the challenges of the pandemic. But the enterprises mobilized resources and adapted to the situation. The pandemic clearly demonstrated the indispensable role of a strong state in managing crises and their consequences. 

“It is important that we design and build more healthcare facilities and ramp up drug production.  You have seen how promising this business is, and the race to develop the world’s first COVID-19 vaccine proves my point. Billions of dollars are at stake. Literally five and a half years ago, Belarusian-made medicines held only 13% of the market. Then the president set an ambitious target: 50% no less. Today we have 60% and that saved us,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said in his Address to the Belarusian people and the National Assembly in 2020.

Yet, on the global stage, things were not going smoothly. Vaccines quickly became tools of geopolitics: some were rejected, others were imposed. In general, full-fledged “vaccine wars” broke out. To avoid becoming an unwitting victim of these events, Belarus also began developing its own viral vaccine.

Over time, the pandemic receded, and the COVID-19 vaccine is no longer as relevant as it was a few years ago. Significant investments were made to set up the production, and the president demanded that these investments yield returns. In other words, if the COVID-19 vaccine is no longer in demand, production needs to be re-purposed to produce the most in-demand vaccines, like flu vaccines, so that the country would no longer have to import them.

“I address the Healthcare Ministry and the National Academy of Sciences. We need a proactive strategy to bring Belarusian medicines, vaccines, and medical equipment to the market. We also need continuous support for developers and manufacturers, including through state procurement. Your role should not be limited to just that of a safety watchdog. Stay ahead of the curve. It was no coincidence that I ordered to create a center to produce vaccines in our country. This is not only to develop a vaccine against the coronavirus. We, especially young people, will see more coronaviruses like this in our lifetime. The world is full of these dangerous viruses. We have become arrogant and careless and grown disconnected from nature. We will pay the price for that. This is why we need to set up this center: not just to produce all kinds of antiviral drugs, but to develop medicines,” the president said two years later.

What is the best remedy?

According to the National Agency of Investment and Privatization, the global pharmaceutical market has already reached $900 billion. This figure will grow by 50% in the coming years. This means Belarus is heading in the right direction by developing its pharmaceutical industry.

We often say that health is the most precious thing a person has. But because it comes to us for free, we don’t always take proper care of it. Here’s a life hack from Aleksandr Lukashenko: the most effective cure for all illnesses is a healthy lifestyle and physical activity. The president emphasizes the importance of encouraging children and adolescents to adopt such a lifestyle. This is why Belarus built and continues to build local and international sports facilities. After all, it is better to spend time there than in hospitals and pharmacies, isn't it?

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