Structural defects holding back growth of Russia's pharmaceutical industry

Despite having grown significant since 2009 and set to be worth $10.7 million by 2014, there are some crucial structural defects in the Russian pharmaceutical market, such as complex administrative procedures and insufficient international cooperation, which tend to inhibit full development for this economic field, noted an article in the Moscow Times.

In 2010, Dmitry Medvedev, the then Russian President, called for further development of the domestic pharmaceutical industry to reduce the country’s dependence on foreign medicines. One year later, in 2011, Vladimir Putin, then the Prime Minister, reiterated the same hope. He supported the development of medical and pharmaceutical industries saying that Russia should be manufacturing at least half the medical equipment it needs by 2020, and federal authorities responded with the “ Russian  2020 Strategy” to encourage growth in the Russian pharmaceutical industry’. The plan aims to support local companies and foster the production of innovative drugs.

The Russian pharmaceutical market represents about 3.6% of the European pharmaceutical industry. The Russian sector grew by 17.5%, in 2009 and by the year 2014, it is expected to reach a value of $10.7 billion.