Pharmaceuticals Market in Iran
With improvements in standard of living, demand for various public services has grown rapidly in the past few years. Although around 12 percent of the total government annual budget is spent on health, both the infrastructure and the consumer health industry remain underdeveloped, providing various untapped opportunities for the businesses in this sector.
Iran Healthcare in Numbers
1266.2 Number of live Births (‘000) DESA (2018)
366.5 Number of Deaths (‘000) DESA (2018)
6.7% Health Expenditure(% of GDP) WHO (2015)
$351 Health Expenditure per Capita Worldbank (2014)
17 Hospital Bed Density per 10,000 Population WHO (2015)
22,700 Number of Pharmacists IRIMC (2017)
92,071 Number of General Practitioners IRIMC (2017)
43,550 Number of Specialists/sub-specialists in Medicine IRIMC (2017)
32,834 Number of Dentists IRIMC (2017)
41,907 Number of Midwives IRIMC (2017)
Modern era in Iranian pharmaceutical industry started in 1920 when the Pasteur Institute of Iran was founded. By March 2016, Iran Pharmaceutical production capability was standing at 40 Billion Units, supplying about 98% of the market. In value terms, however, production covers only 66% of the $4.3bn market, heavily in favor of generic medicines.
Iran Pharmaceuticals in Numbers
$5.2bn Total Value Size IFDA (2016)
34% Share of Imports (in value terms) Iran FDA (2015)
1.34 Daily Consumption per capita (units) Iran FDA (2015)
38,400 Production volume (million Units) Iran FDA (2015)
27% Market Growth (Volume YoY) Iran FDA (2015)