The Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed an US$8 million loan with Imexpharm Corporation to help the company sustain its production of generic medicines despite global supply disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Loan from ADB will help Imexpharm maintain production of generic pharmaceuticals.

The financing will support the company’s working capital needs to ensure ample supply of active pharmaceutical ingredients for essential generic medicine production. Imexpharm’s operations and continued production of generic pharmaceuticals and their ensured availability in the market is integral in safeguarding the country’s health care during the pandemic.

Head of Health and Education Investments at ADB's Private Sector Operations Department Aniruddha Patil said Asia has witnessed disruptions across the pharmaceutical supply chain in 2020, including a shortage of active pharmaceutical ingredients.

“This project demonstrates ADB’s continued efforts to enhance health outcomes in Vietnam by encouraging the development and use of local generic medicines,” Mr. Aniruddha Patil. 

“We are pleased to be working with ADB,” said Imexpharm’s Chairman Nguyen Quoc Dinh. “The financing will improve our liquidity situation and ensure a consistent supply of affordable generic drugs to hospitals and pharmacies across Vietnam.”

This debt financing is part of ADB’s US$20 billion assistance announced on April 13 to help its developing members manage the pandemic.

Imexpharm was established in 1977 and initially incorporated in 1983 as the Dong Thap Pharmaceutical Union. The firm was transformed from a state-owned enterprise into a joint-stock company and renamed Imexpharm Corporation, and its shares were listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange on December 4, 2006. As of September 30, 2020, Imexpharm had 1,252 employees, total assets of VND2.07 trillion (US$89.33 million) and 6 pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities.