Minister of Health and Mass Media, Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa has called upon the State Pharmaceuticals Manufacturing Corporation (SPMC) to step up the country’s pharmaceutical production capacity as the continuous supply of essential medicines to the hospitals and health sector has become a challenge due to various factors.
The Minister was speaking following an inspection tour to review the activities of the SPMC at Ratmalana.
The Minister said that it was impossible to provide a continuous supply of medicines to Government hospitals due to the dearth of drug suppliers, failure of contracted suppliers to continue to supply medicines and the global supply chain disruption. Therefore, there is a shortage of some medicines due to the failure of suppliers to register, he said.
The Minister, who reviewed the issues related to the rapid import of raw materials to increase the pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity, held extensive discussions with the officials on making arrangements to increase the manufacturing capacity quickly by rectifying the identified deficiencies and shortcomings.
Minister Jayatissa said that the SPMC is the oldest and largest state-owned institution related to the pharmaceuticals manufacturing sector in the country, and added that this institution is fulfilling a public service that goes beyond business purposes. He said that steps will be taken to increase the number of Rajya Osusala outlets to cater to the needs of each city.
The Minister also held an extensive discussion with the Chairman and the management of the institute to streamline its activities to be more systematic and transparent, fulfilling its vision, which was a gift from the Japanese Government.
The Minister reviewed the drug manufacturing, raw material procurement, pharmaceutical research and drug distribution programs and provided instructions to the management on how to improve them. The Minister also focused attention on developing institutional social responsibilities, laboratory facilities, pre-production and commissioning, and the new resource development of the institution.
The Minister inspected each department of the SPMC and engaged in cordial discussions with the staff regarding the problems faced by them in carrying out their duties.
