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Members of the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Ghana (PMAG) have unanimously passed a resolution to reduce the prices of selected locally manufactured medicines by five to 15 per cent with immediate effect.
The resolution, agreed on during the PMAG’s general meeting on June 12, 2025, was in recognition of the appreciation of the Ghana cedi against the US dollar and other international currencies.
A statement signed by the President of the PMAG, Dr Samuel Tobbin, said, “The result of the appreciation of the cedi is a reduced cost of import of raw materials and packaging materials, and finally reduced production cost to the pharmaceutical manufacturers.”
It said, given that its members imported the majority of raw and packaging materials for local production of medicines, “the decision of PMAG to pass this benefit to our consumers and patients to alleviate their financial burden and promote access to essential locally manufactured medicines” became imperative.
It said the decision had since been communicated to the Parliamentary Select Committee on Trade, Industry and Tourism.
The PMAG said there was a need to analyse the macroeconomic indicators of Ghana in order to fully appreciate the percentage range of price reduction.
The landscape of the indicators, it said, had shown some positivity in terms of decreasing trend of inflationary rate from 22.4 per cent in March to 16 per cent in June this year; the cedi’s steady appreciation from GH¢16 to a dollar in March to GH¢10.26 to a dollar in June, thereby providing relief to import dependent industries, and government’s efforts to stimulate economic growth through easing monetary policies while maintaining fiscal discipline.
It also said despite the appreciation of the cedi, some challenges and factors were, however, driving production costs high.
These, it said, included delayed payments where pharmaceutical manufacturers supplied the majority of their medicines to government health facilities, but were only reimbursed after government health facilities had received payments from the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).
Under such a term, it said, suppliers had to wait for several months before being paid for supplying.
“This erodes some of the gains from the cedi appreciation. Prompt payment of medicine suppliers by these health facilities will ensure a better realisation of the cedi’s appreciation in the pharmaceutical industry,” it added.
It further mentioned high financing costs as a drawback on the cost of production, indicating that the Ghana Reference Rate was 23.8 per cent, according to the website of the Ghana Association of Banks.
“The ideal situation for pharmaceutical manufacturers is a single-digit interest rate so that further investment will lead to universal health coverage in Ghana.
“Port and logistical fees, inventory bought earlier at the high rate of GH¢16 to a dollar some months ago, are also factors affecting the cost of production.
Thus, a weaker cedi over an extended period of time hinders immediate substantial and broader-based reduction of prices,” the statement emphasised.
The PMAG said it acknowledged those challenges and was committed to working with stakeholders to ensure that price reduction was implemented fairly and sustainably.
“As Ghana has a free pricing policy, which is not controlled, PMAG will continue to work with members and all stakeholders to secure affordable, safe and efficacious medicines for everyone in Ghana to ensure that the benefits of the appreciation of the cedi are passed on to consumers,” it stressed.
