Hikma, a Jordanian pharmaceuticals company, has formed a joint venture with Sheikh Mohammed Hussein Al Amoudi's MIDROC Group to manufacture, market and distribute pharmaceutical products in Ethiopia, Reuters reported.

The two groups will contribute up to US$22.3 million each to create the joint venture, HikmaCure.

 "Ethiopia is still very underdeveloped in terms of the pharmaceutical market," Mazen Darwazah, executive vice chairman and chief executive of Hikma's Middle East and North Africa operations, said in an interview with Reuters.

"It's a market that has huge potential for growth. We are expecting an increase in expenditure on healthcare: today is US$400 million but we are expecting it in the next couple of years to go up to US$1 billion."

Hikma manufactures and sells branded pharmaceuticals in Middle Eastern and North African markets. It also has a U.S. focused generics business and an injectables unit.

Jeddah-based MEDROC, whit operations in sectors including petroleum, agriculture, engineering and construction, is a major foreign investor in Ethiopia.

Source: Reuters