Singapore Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report

Singapore now represents an average proposition for multinational pharmaceutical companies operating in Asia Pacific, behind established leaders such as Japan and South Korea. The country slipped from fourth in BMI's Q209 regional Business Environment Rankings (BER) matrix to sixth in Q309 and further to eighth in Q409. Positives include a 100% urban market and a predictable operating climate, including political and economic stability. However, its limited growth potential, due to a small population size, as well as the current economic conditions (despite the expected full recovery from 2012), have conspired to negatively impact Singapore's attractiveness. In local currency terms, we forecasts only a marginal compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 1.40%, with the market at consumer prices rising from SGD791mn (US$561mn) in 2008 to SGD848mn (US$606mn) in 2013.

An additional challenge is the chronic shortage of pharmacists, with authorities striving to recruit professionals from abroad. In May 2009, the Singapore Pharmacy Council (SPC) introduced a new professional exam for foreign-trained pharmacists, in order to ensure high ethical standards in the sector.

Around the same time, SPC introduced 'inactive' status for pharmacies, with those that are not practicing any longer having to pay only a portion of the retention fee. The change has been introduced in a bid to encourage pharmacists to remain on the register in Singapore.

Still, healthcare modernisation and the expansion of medical facilities - especially for the elderly - will continue to provide an impetus for growth. In the meantime, the government remains committed to providing incentives for foreign direct investment (FDI) in biosciences. In 2008, US$500mn was invested by foreign players in Singapore's biomedical sciences sector, according to Singapore's Economic Development Board (EDB), with the government targeting US$17bn in biosciences manufacturing output by 2015, up from US$4.56bn in 2000). This goal is likely to be achieved, given the news that both UKbased GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Swiss Lonza are investing in local manufacturing facilities for the production of vaccines and cell-based therapeutics, respectively. Similarly, the June 2009 inauguration of the new Investigational Medicines Unit by the National University Hospital (NUH) also aims to promote Singapore's attractiveness as a regional clinical trials base.

In terms of recent epidemiological developments, AsiaOne reported a drastic increase in the number of genital warts cases in Singapore, which are caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV). An HPV vaccine is already available in Singapore, as a protection against both genital warts and cervical cancer, but only for females aged nine or over. Experts are pushing for the vaccine to be made available to males, who comprise the majority of genital warts cases. By early August 2009, Singapore also recorded nine human deaths from the swine flu virus, with the authorities reporting that they are capable of containing the rising number of A (N1H1) cases.