Pharmaceutical Industry: Gov’t Chief Inaugurates First 4.0 Plant in Africa

The Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch inaugurated on Tuesday in the Oulad Salah industrial zone in Bouskoura, the Smart Factory, the first 4.0 pharmaceutical plant in Africa belonging to the Pharma 5 Group.

Resulting from a close collaboration between Moroccan know-how in the pharmaceutical industry and the best international expertise, the Smart Factory was built on an area of 12,000 m2 for an overall investment of over 300 million dirhams.

This new fully digitalized industrial unit will enable the Pharma 5 Group to increase its production capacity fivefold while ensuring perfect traceability of all production processes.

Thanks to the remote and real time monitoring tools installed in all the compartments of the factory built according to the Shell Building technique, which favors the management of liquid flows, air quality, pressure, humidity, temperature and ensures “Data Integrity”.

Designed in a unique innovation ecosystem that places agility at the heart of the entire design and operation process through digitizing processes, combined with robotizing certain operations, the plant stands out for its ability to integrate all future technological advances, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence.

During this inauguration ceremony also marked by the presence of the Minister of Health and Social Protection Khalid Ait Taleb, and the Minister Delegate in charge of Investment, Convergence and Evaluation of Public Policies Mohcine Jazouli, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Ministry of Health and Social Protection and the Pharma 5 Group.

Ait Taleb told the press that the Smart Factory’s vision is part of the guidelines of the Kingdom in terms of health and drug sovereignty. “It is necessary to encourage the pharmaceutical industry and the production of generic drugs at a time when countries suffer from difficulties in the supply of raw materials for manufacturing drugs,” he said.

After praising the progress made by the Pharma 5 Group in terms of digitization and development of its industrial tool, the Minister called for promoting and supporting local initiatives that should contribute to deploying the national project of generalizing compulsory health insurance (AMO) and its effective implementation through facilitating access to medicines.

“This new industrial unit is a significant contribution to the royal project of AMO’s generalization and the guarantee of national health sovereignty,” said the Director General of the Pharma 5 Group, Mia Lahlou-Filali, adding that the generic drug “Made in Morocco” is indeed a major component of care that already benefit “millions of our compatriots”.

“The agreement that we ratify today concerns the creation of new production units of injectables, biotechnologies, new galenic forms and research and development in new therapeutic areas,” explained Lahlou-Filali, noting that “Pharma 5 is committed to invest no less than 300 million dirhams by 2027 and create a minimum of 300 direct jobs.”

Committed for 40 years to therapeutic independence and access to care for all, Pharma 5 confirms by this inauguration its positioning as a pioneer of the pharmaceutical industry both in Morocco and in Africa.

With more than one billion units produced by 2022, Pharma 5 is today the leader in generic drugs in Morocco and in exports to more than 40 countries, thus taking 7th place in the African market, which has no less than 1,200 international players.