Julphar Ethiopia (Gulf Pharmaceutical PLC) announced that they have been working to up their production of hand sanitizer and other essential medicines in wake of the coronavirus pandemic, which is showing a surge in recent weeks in Ethiopia.
Fregenet Getachew, Julphar Country Manager, told the Ethiopian Herald that the company has been "witnessing unwavering commitment to fight the pandemic and it has been able to quickly and efficiently provide hand sanitizers to government and non-government entities." Julphar has donated 600 liters of sanitizers since the outbreak of COVID-19 in Ethiopia, the Country Manager pointed out. She also said the company is working on increasing its capacity to produce other products such as paracetamol and other essential medicines to address the increased demand being faced due to the pandemic.
Fregenet pointed out that Julphar has also helped cater to unmet needs currently faced in Ethiopia by importing various medicines from their parent company Gulf Pharmaceuticals Industries, which is located in the UAE, to help fight the coronavirus pandemic, in addition to "working tirelessly" on other key initiatives such as identifying additional products which will make a number of additional and urgently needed medication available for patients in Ethiopia.
“As a competent and committed partner to addressing the challenges Ethiopia faces in the current COVID-19 crisis, not only we have been working to ensure the supply of sanitizers to institutions across the country, we also have a plant upgrade project currently underway to further enhance [the] capacity of our products and medicines, giving greater access to those in need,” the Country Manager says.
Regardless, the Country Manager mentions a shortage of alcohol, which is the main ingredient for the manufacturing of hand sanitizers, as a challenge in preparing COVID-19 prevention supplies. While a possible solution would be to import alcohol, she mentions a shortage of foreign currency as an added challenge to this. She has also raised the issue of obtaining quality plastic containers for the hand sanitizers produced.
Source: The Ethiopian Herald
