INTERVIEW
PHARMACARE: Scientific Breakthrough
Interview with Pharmacare Group Chairman & CEO, Dr. Bassim Khoury
Upon receiving the good news of Pharmacare Group’s success in developing two successful bioequivalence trials rival to Novartis’ Votrient cancer treatment, the Arab – Hellenic Chamber sat down with the Group’s Chairman and CEO, Dr. Bassim Khoury, a leading figure in the Healthcare industry and former Minister of National Economy of Palestine, to give us a history of his business ventures and his most recent success.
1. What is the Pharmacare Group? The Pharmacare group includes two Pharmaceutical manufacturing companies: Pharmacare PLC in Palestine and Pharmacare Premium in Malta. 2. Give us a brief background about Pharmacare Palestine? Pharmacare is a public limited liability company established in 1985 on a belief that profitable Palestinian industrial production could thrive and that the Palestinian people deserve access to high quality affordable medication. For the last 36 years Pharmacare succeeded in making this belief a reality. Pharmacare Palestine provides high quality conventional products to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. Pharmacare Palestine was and continues to be on the forefront of pharmaceutical excellence in Palestine. This investment in quality and technology made it the only Palestinian company to export products to the EU and other European markets, from the same facility used to supply the local market, after it obtained the European Current Good Manufacturing Practice (c-GMP) certificate in 2008. Achieving this level of quality meant adhering to quality standards in all stages of production and being subject to multiple inspections on a routine basis. Pharmacare Palestine also supplies a large number of other international markets.
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The most recent success enjoyed by Pharmacare Palestine is the launching of soft gelatin capsule products, the first to be completely manufactured in Palestine. 3. Give us a brief background about Pharmacare Premium? Pharmacare Premium is a Malta based Pharmaceutical company, founded in 2011 by Pharmacare Palestine. It is focused on the production of high potency products such as oncology and immunosuppressant medication. Pharmacare Premium is a B2B business that develops and manufactures is own products and addition to contract manufacturing and testing of partners’ products. Pharmacare Premium Malta increases Pharmacare Palestine’s global reach, supplying to the EU, Latam, Africa, MENA and Central and South East Asia regions and creating a channel for technology and innovation to flow into Pharmacare Palestine. 4. Why did you choose Malta? Malta offers a wide range of advantages that makes it attractive to pharmaceutical investment. Being located in the EU gives access to a large market and numerous companies to do business with. It is relatively close to Palestine and very well connected with air and sea links thus the movement of goods and personal is easy.
