Santa Farma Chairman Erol Kiresepi:
“WE CAN MAKE PANDEMIC AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE INDUSTRY”
Santa Farma Chairman Erol Kiresepi pointed out that serious efforts should be made for turning the crisis arising from the pandemic into an opportunity for the industry. “This crisis is a turning point in world history. And it does not look like we will come over the crisis easily. Yet, our company has come across and tackled several crises for 77 years. Let us stand together and continue to offer healthy services to health,” he said.
Santa Farma held an online assessment meeting for the year 2020. During the meeting in which 2021 objectives were discussed, Santa Farma Chairman Erol Kiresepi addressed the employees of Santa Farma and gave important messages about the global and domestic industrial anticipations in the face of the pandemic.
Mr Kiresepi noted that the most important lesson to be learned from the pandemic is the priority of social benefits over individual benefits. “Another socioeconomic problem which was revealed by the pandemic is the fair distribution of vaccinations and potential therapeutic drugs to all human beings on earth,” he said.
The industry grew by 21 per cent
Mr Kiresepi explained that Turkish pharmaceutical industry grew by 21 per cent in terms of value and increased from TRY 41 billion in 2019 to TRY 49.8 billion in 2020 while the production dropped by 2.8% and decreased from 2 billion 210 million boxes in 2019 to 2 billion 150 million in 2020.
Explaining the reason of increase in value and decrease in number of boxes in the industry, Mr Kiresepi said: “The reduction in production is clearly related to the pandemic conditions. The most important reason for the increase in value is the increase in prices. Still, shift of product demands to high-priced products and new products may also be another reason of the increase in value. The industry experienced an increase in value without an increase in production. This has nothing to do with the growth of market share. This is the sheer result of the pandemic and the negative condition in Turkish economy. What is important is to grow Turkish pharmaceutical market and rise to higher levels in global pharmaceutical market. As noted in all strategic management approaches, we need to turn threats into opportunities and assert ourselves.”
Mr Kiresepi explained that the global market value of pharmaceutical industry is USD 1 trillion 250 billion as of 2020. “Although the market value is expected to reach USD 1 trillion 300 billion in 2021, the pandemic has already created an impact on the global pharmaceutical market. The market value is expected to reach USD 1 billion 600 billion by 2023,” he said.
“The industry is yet to undergo significant structural changes”
Mr Kiresepi also addressed the anticipations about the industry and said: “As in all other industries, the pharmaceutical industry will also undergo significant structural changes due to technological and demographic developments as well as climate change. Futurists anticipate that preeminent manufacturers will focus on development of molecules and manufacturing of active ingredients due to rising costs and manufacturing operations will be mainly performed by generic drug manufacturers. This means that the generic markets will flourish in near future.
“The industrial actors must keep up with digital technology, embrace Industry 4.0 and improve their R&D investments like the other industries. Undoubtedly, there will be an increase in investments. As digital treatment age begins, patient, doctor, diagnosis and treatment chain will go mainly digital. Patients will be treated in their homes instead of hospitals and clinics. In this new age, only surgical operations will be conducted in hospitals and clinics. Climate change will lead to eruption of unknown viruses which means that R&D efforts will increase for development of new vaccinations and drugs. This will lead the pharmaceutical industry to make changes in its portfolio of genetic chronic diseases. As always, the pharmaceutical industry will serve health from the cradle to the grave.”
Business world is redesigned
Mr Kiresepi took notice of the radical changes in business and social life due to the pandemic which continues and will continue for a long time. "Under the new business model, functional jobs are slowly replaced by artificial intelligence. Other employees are expected to be professionals who will perform project-based work. In short, the need for educated and qualified workforce increases. The new normal is expected to give rise to new professions and occupations although there is a risk of unemployment current.
“International Organisation of Employers (IOE) and International Labour Organisation (ILO) focus primarily on potential unemployment and increasing migration problems. Corporations attempt to survive this crisis rather than making profits. Therefore, quality rather than quantity is the rising star for corporations in this new normal. Corporations prioritize reliability and sustainability over profitability. In short, business world is redesigned," he said.