MVIRDC World Trade Center Mumbai, in collaboration with All India Association of Industries (AIAI) organized an interactive meeting on ‘Doing Business with Uzbekistan’ with special focus on the pharmaceutical sector. The event was addressed by Mr. Alisher Temirov, Deputy Minister, Pharmaceutical Industry Development of Uzbekistan and Mr. Botir Khudoyberdeiv, Chief Specialist of the Investment Department, Government of Uzbekistan.

Sharing his perspectives on this occasion, Mr. Temirov said, “Today’s meeting has set a new phase in the pharmaceutical cooperation between India and Uzbekistan. Already, seven Uzbek companies have joint ventures with India and around 30% of drugs sold in Uzbekistan is imported from India. The President of Uzbekistan has announced six pharmaceutical Free Economic Zones (FEZs) through a decree and this heralds a new era in the history of Uzbekistan.”

Pointing to the potential of pharmaceutical sector in Uzbekistan, Mr. Temirov remarked, “Uzbekistan has the leading pharmaceutical industry in Central Asia. The number of pharmaceutical companies in Uzbekistan has grown from three in 1991 to more than 207 today, of which 100 firms make drugs and another 100 manufacture medical devices. The size of the sector is USD 1.3 billion and we expect to grow this to USD 1.5 billion in the coming years. In the last three years, 50 investment projects have been approved and domestic production of drugs has grown three-fold since 2014. There are 750 medicinal plants grown in Uzbekistan.”

Speaking about the government incentives for new investors in pharmaceutical zones, Mr. Temirov mentioned, “Investors can benefit from tax holiday upto 10 years, based on the value of investment. The government exempts land, property tax and customs duties on imported raw materials in the free economic zones (FEZs). A new investor can start business within 10 days of application. The government has introduced online submission facility for new drug registration. It takes maximum 155 days for registering a new drug in Uzbekistan.”

In his remarks, Mr. Khudoyberdeiv informed about the sectors where private investors have lined up investment projects and the estimated jobs that will be created from these investments. Specifically, he pointed out the scope for investment and exports in sectors such as oncology and dermatology in Uzbekistan.

Earlier in his welcome remarks, Dr. Vijay Kalantri, Chairman, MVIRDC World Trade Center Mumbai and Hon. Consul General of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Mumbai said, “There is ample scope for promoting bilateral cooperation in pharmaceutical sector as India is the pharmacy hub of Asia and Uzbekistan government is keen to promote local manufacturing of drugs and medical devices. Indian pharmaceutical companies can set up a manufacturing plant in Uzbekistan and export to the 110 million consumer market of Central Asia and neighbouring countries, with which it has trade agreements. Alternatively, Indian pharmaceutical firms can export finished drugs to Uzbekistan and then re-export to neighbouring countries after packaging.”

Capt. Somesh Batra, Vice Chairman, MVIRDC World Trade Center Mumbai proposed vote of thanks for the event.

The meeting was followed by networking session between the delegation members and representatives from pharmaceutical industry in India.

In Photo no. 1 (L-R)  Dr. Vijay Kalantri, Chairman, WTC Mumbai, Mr. Alisher Temirov, Deputy Minister, Pharmaceutical Industry Development of Uzbekistan and Mr. Botir Khudoyberdeiv, Chief Specialist of the Investment Department, Government of Uzbekistan and Capt. Somesh Batra, Vice Chairman, WTC Mumbai

In Photo no. 2  (L-R) Dr. Vijay Kalantri, Chairman, WTC Mumbai with Mr. Alisher Temirov, Deputy Minister, Pharmaceutical Industry Development of Uzbekistan