KARACHI: The life expectancy in Pakistan has increased by approximately 10 years over the past 27 years, a speaker claimed at the Pharma Asia 2026 conference, partly attributing the betterment in lives to improved access to and use of medicines by patients in the country between 1999 and 2026.
“Pakistan’s average life expectancy has improved by 10 years from 1999 to 2026 due to medication,” Neutro Pharma CEO Hamid Raza said while speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Fuelling Sustainable Growth: Capital, Capacity and Credibility’ at the conference.
According to World Bank data, the average life expectancy in Pakistan increased to 67.8 years in 2024 from 59.7 years in 1990 – showing lives rising on an average by 8.1 years in 34 years. The expectancy stood at 61.9 years in the year 2000.
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Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) Senior Vice Chairman Dr Faisal Khokhar said in the conference the country’s pharmaceutical sector is poised for another milestone, with a third pharmaceutical company expected to achieve Stringent Regulatory Authority (SRA) status next year, potentially opening doors to export locally produced medicines to high-value international markets.
The high-end global pharmaceutical export markets are including the US, United Kingdom, European Union, Japan, Canada and Australia, it was learnt.
Khokhar said there are some 12-13 internally accredited pharmaceutical companies including two SRA-approved ones in Pakistan.
“We have two SRAs. Now, we are working for the third SRA. Hopefully, we should be able to get it next year,” he said.
“SRAs give you credibility,” he maintained, adding the international stringent global regulations would help Pakistan to attract the much-required private equity, and venture capital (VC) into pharmaceutical sector in line with global practices.
“Capital is not coming from banks. One or two companies might be able to swing it with their contacts, but that’s not an industry-based solution. So, we need to attract private equity and venture capital investment into Pakistani companies.
“Pharmaceutical is a very, very capital-intensive industry. The sector needs machines, manufacturing facilities, and high-end regulation. So, the capital is needed,” he said.
“The world over, the money in pharmaceuticals has come from private equity, from venture capital. Now, we need to attract those people to come and invest in Pakistan. Because capital is needed.”
According to PPMA official, Pakistan pharmaceutical sector has to advance its journey to commercialisation to remain able to supply advanced medicines to patients and help them cure, delay encountering diseases and improve lives.
“The achievement of capital, capacity and credibility through international accreditation would all be taken care by commercialisation of the pharmaceutical sector,” he added.
“The pharmaceutical firms will have to talk among themselves for capacity alignment and establish alliances, and do work in collaboration with international players including the ones working in India to go commercial.”
Speaking to Business Recorder on sidelines of the three-day exhibition and conference, PPMA Chairman Adnan Hirani said some 800 pharmaceutical players had set up their stalls and booths at across seven halls at Karachi Expo Centre. They were including more than 200 foreign delegates.
This was the 24th Pharma Asia and as well as 14th International Pharma Convention with a theme ‘Resilient Pharma Pakistan: Quality, Self-Reliance & Sustainable Growth’, Hirani mentioned.
“Exhibitors have showcased latest pharmaceutical technology that is expected to see a number of memorandum of understandings (MoUs) among local and global firms on attracting technology, innovation and investment across the borders.”
PPMA former chairman Dr Sheikh Kaiser Waheed said professionals in the pharmaceutical sector should be entrepreneurs rather than just professionals.
“Professionals run by books. On the other hand, entrepreneurs calculate the risk, and find opportunities out of challenges. They find new ideas, work on them, and give benefit of innovation and new developments to people in the healthcare system,” he said.
The Searle Company CEO Tahir Ahmed said this is time to invest in bio-technology and China can be a great help to Pakistan to get excellence in the value addition field.
He argued that this is not the time to produce APIs (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient/ raw material) locally. “Pakistan should have done this 20-30 years ago.”
“I think APIs will not give you the competitive advantage at all. I may be completely wrong and I sincerely wish I am wrong. But if you go and manufacture APIs locally, it will give you what? 20 percent less [in value term].
“We don’t have to reinvent the wheel [APIs]? Absolutely. We need to reproduce something else and that is biotechnology. Biotechnology is the name of the game,” Ahmed said.
“We know there is a demand of biologicals. But the neighboring countries for one reason or the other…cannot export biologicals till a certain timeline. But we can. And this is the time we need to go and take this market.”
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026