CARDIOVASCULAR JOURNAL OF AFRICA • Volume 25, No 3, May/June 2014
142
AFRICA
Industry News
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals launches in Zambia
After months of planning, we are pleased
to announce that AstraZeneca Pharma-
ceuticals is now officially operational in
Zambia. As a global biopharmaceutical
company, AstraZeneca touches many
people’s lives by providing innovative
medicines for some of the world’s most
serious diseases. We are inspired and opti-
mistic that we now find ourselves in a
position where we can bring our health-
care solutions to the people of Zambia;
meaningful solutions that will help us
deliver on our promise of ‘better health
for all’.
We recognise the magnitude of the
healthcare problems we face as a conti-
nent – without doubt, non-communicable
diseases (NCDs) are the scourge of Africa
– and AstraZeneca is committed to find-
ing ways to treat and prevent the spread
of these serious illnesses. We believe
our commitment to making a success of
our entry into the Zambian market is an
important step towards the realisation
of this goal and in turn, the full poten-
tial of Africa. By partnering with local
healthcare practitioners and the larger
medical community, we hope to gain
a deeper understanding of the medical
challenges facing the country, and look
forward to sharing and collaborating with
Government in this process.
The timing of AstraZeneca Pharma-
ceuticals’ launch into Zambia could not
have been better: the African continent
is sitting on a veritable NCD time bomb
with cardiovascular diseases, diabetes,
obesity, oncology and smoking-related
illnesses becoming increasingly prevalent.
‘There is a huge unmet medical need on
the continent, and Zambia is no different.
AstraZeneca has the right medical exper-
tise and products to make a meaningful
difference, particularly in the areas of
non-communicable diseases’, reports Karl
Friberg, AstraZeneca company president,
South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.
AstraZeneca is one of only a handful of
pure-play biopharmaceutical companies
to span the entire value chain of a medi-
cine from discovery, early- and late-stage
development, to manufacturing and distri-
bution, as well as the global commerciali-
sation of primary-care and speciality-care
medicines that transform lives.
The company will initially be focusing
on providing cardiovascular, respiratory
and gastrointestinal drugs to the Zambian
market and will keep expanding its prod-
uct portfolio to cover diseases such as
oncology and diabetes. As a global ethical
company, AstraZeneca invests over US$4
billion in research and development each
year in order to search for solutions to
unmet medical needs. The company has
a strong pipeline in place, particularly in
respiratory medicine, infection, oncology
and diabetes, with plans to launch five
new diabetes brands plus a drug for acute
coronary syndrome in the near future.
Heading up the all-local team in
Zambia is a highly experienced country
leader (Tania Nyirongo). Future employ-
ment opportunities for Zambians are good,
particularly as the business grows organi-
cally, at which point additional medical
sales representatives will be required.
‘We are totally committed to the
success of the business in Zambia’, says
Friberg. ‘Our intention is to make a differ-
ence to the healthcare industry in Zambia
and to this end we will be bringing in
three international speakers to address
the local medical community on the latest
treatments in the areas of oncology, and
gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases
as part of our launch. We also intend to
host regular symposiums and product
launches and to ensure close communica-
tion with the medical community through
our medical sales reps.’
The company is already operational in
11 sub-Saharan African countries, includ-
ing Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia,
Uganda, Tanzania, Angola, Mozambique,
Botswana, Namibia and Mauritius as well
as South Africa. It plans to launch in
Rwanda next.
A scientific leader in its field,
AstraZeneca manufactures in 16 countries
and is committed to ensuring a reliable
supply of medicines wherever they are
needed. Operational in over 100 countries
and employing more than 51 000 people,
its medicines are used by millions of
patients globally.
For further information or to set up interviews,
contact Kedi Motshedi. Tel: (011) 465-9815, Cell:
072 979 785, e-mail:
.
World Health Organisation NCD key facts
•
NCDs kill more than 36 million people
each year. Some 80% (29 million)
of all NCD deaths occur in low- and
middle-income countries.
•
More than nine million of all deaths
attributed to NCDs occur before the
age of 60; 90% of these ‘premature’
deaths occurred in low- and middle-
income countries.
•
Cardiovascular diseases account for
most NCD deaths, or 17.3 million
people annually, followed by cancers
(7.6 million), respiratory diseases (4.2
million), and diabetes (1.3 million
1
).
•
These four groups of diseases account
for around 80% of all NCD deaths.
•
They share four risk factors: tobacco
use, physical inactivity, the harmful
use of alcohol and unhealthy diets.
References
1.
Lim SS, Vos T, Flaxman AD, Danaei G,
Shibuya K, Adair-Rohani H et al. A compar-
ative risk assessment of burden of disease
and injury attributable to 67 risk factors
and risk factor clusters in 21 regions, 1990-
2010: a systematic analysis for the Global
Burden of Disease Study 2010.
Lancet
,
2012;
380
(9859):2224-2260.
