Harid Anad on How Africure Pharmaceuticals Is Transforming Pharmaceutical Manufacturing in Côte d’Ivoire
In this interview, Harid Anad, Director General of Africure Pharmaceuticals, discusses the remarkable growth of Africure Pharmaceuticals Côte d’Ivoire and its role in strengthening pharmaceutical manufacturing in Côte d’Ivoire and across French-speaking West Africa. Since its inauguration in 2020, the company has evolved into one of the largest pharmaceutical plants in West Africa, significantly expanding its pharmaceutical production capacity through strategic investment, improved supply chains, and a commitment to local pharmaceutical production in Africa.
Harid Anad explains how the pharmaceutical factory in Côte d’Ivoire contributes to reducing the country’s dependence on imported medicines while creating employment opportunities and developing local expertise. With nearly 95% of its workforce Ivorian, Africure Pharmaceuticals has become a model for job creation and workforce development in the pharmaceutical sector. The company aims to support Côte d’Ivoire’s industrialisation through pharmaceutical manufacturing while strengthening healthcare resilience in Africa.
The interview highlights Africure Pharmaceuticals’ extensive manufacturing capabilities, including the production of tablets, capsules, and syrups at a scale unmatched by other pharmaceutical plants in Côte d’Ivoire. The company manufactures a wide range of affordable generic medicines in Africa, including Paracetamol 500mg tablets, Cotrimoxazole 960mg tablets, Albendazole tablets, antibiotics, antimalarials, and paediatric paracetamol suspension. By focusing on branded generics, Africure Pharmaceuticals provides affordable healthcare solutions in Côte d’Ivoire and across the region.
Harid Anad also outlines the company’s ambitious pharmaceutical plant expansion plans. These include the development of a beta-lactam manufacturing plant in Grand-Bassam dedicated to antibiotic manufacturing, the installation of new syrup manufacturing facilities, and the construction of modern pharmaceutical warehouses to improve medicine storage and emergency preparedness. These investments are expected to further increase local pharmaceutical manufacturing growth and strengthen the pharmaceutical supply chain in Africa.
The discussion also covers pharmaceutical exports from Côte d’Ivoire and the company’s regional expansion strategy. Africure Pharmaceuticals currently supplies products to Burkina Faso and Liberia and is expanding throughout the UEMOA pharmaceutical market, including Benin, Togo, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Guinea. This growing regional pharmaceutical distribution network positions the company as a leading pharmaceutical supplier in West Africa and an important contributor to medicine supply across West Africa.
Quality and regulatory compliance are central themes throughout the interview. Harid Anad explains how Africure Pharmaceuticals operates according to WHO-compliant pharmaceutical manufacturing standards and maintains rigorous pharmaceutical quality assurance systems and pharmaceutical quality control procedures. The company was the first pharmaceutical manufacturer to receive approval from Côte d’Ivoire’s new pharmaceutical regulatory authority, reflecting its commitment to regulatory compliance for medicines and WHO-standard pharmaceutical production.
Beyond business growth, the interview explores the company’s broader social impact. Africure Pharmaceuticals actively supports medical outreach programmes in Côte d’Ivoire, healthcare community engagement initiatives, public health partnerships, and educational projects. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company contributed by importing and donating rapid testing kits, demonstrating its commitment to improving healthcare access in West Africa and supporting local communities.
Looking ahead, Africure Pharmaceuticals aims to become a leading pharmaceutical manufacturing company serving French-speaking West Africa, while expanding its production capacity, creating additional jobs, increasing pharmaceutical exports, and continuing its mission of producing affordable medicines at scale. Through its investments in local pharmaceutical production, healthcare accessibility, and regional pharmaceutical distribution, the company is helping shape the future of the pharmaceutical industry in Africa.
Read the full Interview below:
Can you tell us about the history of Africure Pharmaceuticals and its journey so far?
Africure Pharmaceuticals was inaugurated on 12 March 2020 in the presence of His Excellency Vice President Daniel Kablan Duncan and the then Minister of Health, Dr Aka Aouélé. I have personally been in Côte d’Ivoire since 15 January 2017, and we celebrated the company’s sixth anniversary on 12 March 2026.
Initially, we faced several challenges after inauguration, including supply chain disruptions, irregular raw material availability, delayed government payments, and production-related issues. However, after B5 Plus International entered the company in 2025, production improved significantly and expanded into almost two shifts.
Today, we are one of the largest pharmaceutical plants in French-speaking West Africa, with an annual production capacity of 1 billion tablets, 450 million capsules, and 150 million syrups. Previously, the plant operated at only 25–30% capacity, but production has now increased substantially due to improved supply chains and investment from the new ownership.
How does Africure Pharmaceuticals contribute to employment and the local economy?
At the time of inauguration, we employed approximately 170 workers. We currently operate with around 130 employees, and nearly 95% of them are Ivorians. We have trained the local workforce extensively, and they are now fully capable of managing factory operations independently. Only six to seven expatriates work at the facility.
The company also contributes to reducing Côte d’Ivoire’s dependence on imported pharmaceutical products. Once operating at full annual capacity, we estimate that we can supply approximately 10% of the country’s pharmaceutical demand, representing around €30 million of Côte d’Ivoire’s estimated €300 million pharmaceutical imports.
How are your products distributed, and what are your regional expansion plans?
We currently supply products through one government procurement tender known as UELPSB, as well as four major pharmaceutical wholesalers: Laborex, TEDIS Pharma, Copharmed, and DPCI. These distributors are largely managed from France, but as a local manufacturer we can supply directly to them.
Beyond Côte d’Ivoire, we also supply products to Burkina Faso and are currently registering products in countries across the UEMOA region, including Benin, Togo, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Guinea. We also have products registered in Liberia. By the end of 2026, we expect to supply products to eight countries in total.
What are your plans for manufacturing expansion?
Our objective is to fully utilise the plant’s manufacturing capacity by operating two complete shifts, amounting to approximately 18 hours of daily production. This will create more employment opportunities and reduce the country’s dependence on imported medicines.
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed major weaknesses in global supply chains. A local pharmaceutical manufacturer such as Africure Pharmaceuticals can help governments respond more effectively during emergencies by supplying essential medicines like paracetamol, antibiotics, and antimalarials without depending entirely on overseas shipments.
We have also acquired 17,000 square metres of land in the Grand-Bassam industrial zone for the development of a beta-lactam manufacturing plant. This facility will produce antibiotics such as amoxicillin, which is widely used as a first-line treatment for infections. Construction is expected to be completed in 2026, while installation and regulatory approvals should conclude in 2027. Full production is expected by late 2027 or early 2028.
In addition, we are increasing our syrup manufacturing capacity from 12 million bottles annually to 30 million bottles annually through the installation of two new liquid-filling plants. We are also constructing two warehouses of 2,500 square metres each to improve medicine storage capacity and emergency preparedness.
What gives Africure Pharmaceuticals a competitive advantage in the market?
Africure Pharmaceuticals stands out because of several important advantages. Firstly, our manufacturing capacity is significantly larger than that of any other pharmaceutical plant in Côte d’Ivoire. None of the other factories possess even half of our production capacity.
Secondly, no other local company operates across all three major dosage forms — tablets, capsules, and syrups at this scale.
Thirdly, Africure Pharmaceuticals possesses approximately 80 licensed pharmaceutical products registered in Côte d’Ivoire. The country’s regulatory standards are very strict and aligned with World Health Organization standards. Having such a broad licensed portfolio is therefore a major advantage.
Another important factor is affordability. We focus on branded generic medicines rather than expensive imported brands, allowing our products to remain accessible to patients across all income levels.
What are some of your major pharmaceutical products?
One of our key products is Paracetamol 500mg tablets, which are widely supplied across French-speaking Africa. Fever management is essential in treating many illnesses, including malaria and infections, making paracetamol one of the most widely used medicines. We also manufacture paracetamol suspension for paediatric patients.
Another major product is Cotrimoxazole 960mg tablets, used primarily for immunocompromised patients, including individuals living with HIV. We also produce Cotrimoxazole 480mg tablets and syrup formulations.
In addition, we manufacture Albendazole tablets and suspension for deworming treatments, alongside a wide range of antibiotics, painkillers, and other pharmaceutical products.
How does the company ensure quality and regulatory compliance?
The Ivorian pharmaceutical regulatory authority operates according to WHO standards and maintains strict requirements. We are proud to say that after the establishment of the new regulatory authority in 2019, Africure Pharmaceuticals became the first company to receive approval from the authority in 2020.
We maintain a comprehensive quality assurance and quality control system, with approximately 15 staff dedicated to these departments. Quality checks are conducted at every stage, from raw material receipt to production, packaging, and final delivery.
For product registration, we produce three validation batches and conduct six-month stability studies, which continue for up to two years after production. These results are submitted to regulatory authorities in each country where the products are registered, including Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Benin, and Togo. Products are approved only after laboratory verification confirms compliance with all specifications.
Where do you see the company in the next two to five years?
Within the next two years, we expect to become a €20 million pharmaceutical supply company serving French-speaking West Africa. This growth will be supported by the expansion of the beta-lactam facility and increased syrup manufacturing capacity.
We also expect to become one of the largest employers in the pharmaceutical sector in Côte d’Ivoire, with approximately 250 employees managing the three manufacturing plants.
Our mission is not only profitability but also accessibility. Since we operate in the branded generic segment, our profit margins are lower than those of companies selling expensive imported brands. However, our goal is to produce affordable medicines at scale, create employment, and reduce Côte d’Ivoire’s dependence on imported pharmaceuticals.
Beyond business growth, how does the company contribute to society?
Since before the factory’s inauguration in 2020, we have worked closely with public hospitals, schools, the Ministry of Health, and the Ivorian pharmaceutical regulatory authority.
We organise medical outreach programmes and health camps in collaboration with doctors, nurses, and hospitals. We also support public schools by supplying notebooks, pencils, and other educational materials.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we imported rapid COVID-19 detection kits from India and donated them to the Ministry of Health and regulatory authorities.
Community engagement has always been central to our mission. Beyond employment and medicine supply, we strongly believe in giving back to society and supporting social causes wherever possible.