Local Production

Local production can improve supply resilience, reduce import dependence, and potentially lower prices for high-cost medicines. Stakeholders viewed local production as a promising route to better access through affordable quality-assured generics and biosimilars. Local production of anticancer medicines was much more limited than NEML inclusion or registration. Countries listing more anticancer medicines in their NEMLs tended to produce more of them locally. India had the strongest local production capacity in the region, while Bangladesh had a growing generic manufacturing and export market. Local production faced barriers including weak regulatory frameworks, limited infrastructure, workforce shortages, imported raw material dependence, and small oncology markets.