Gamal El-Leithy, head of the Pharmaceutical Industry Chamber, stated that drug prices in Egypt are reasonable, highlighting that self-sufficiency has reached 91.5%.

He added during an interview on the “Masaa DMC” program aired on DMC channel on Wednesday evening that the government is working with the Cabinet, the Drug Authority, and the Chamber on a plan to gradually localize imported cancer drugs.

He pointed out that Egypt aims to achieve 95% self-sufficiency by 2030, noting that imported drugs account for 30% of the total price value.

He continued: “The price of an imported unit is four times that of a local unit, especially since cancer drugs are inherently expensive, so we seek to localize them in Egypt to reduce the country’s import bill.”

He noted that Egypt achieves 100% self-sufficiency in medicines for hypertension, diabetes, psychiatric, neurological, and heart diseases, confirming the quality of local products.

He mentioned that the World Health Organization recognizes the competence of the Drug Authority and confirms the quality of medicines manufactured in Egypt, citing the eradication of the hepatitis C virus with an Egyptian-made drug.