Egyptian Minister of Heath and Population Khaled Abdel-Ghaffar during a meeting in Cairo on Tuesday (Photo courtesy of Health Ministry)
The minister said that Egypt will begin exporting insulin to African countries as soon as it attains self-sufficiency.
The minister's remarks came during a meeting with Chairman of the Arab Company for Drug Industries and Medical Appliances, Olfat Ghorab.
The meeting was held on the sidelines of an inspection tour of the Medical Professions Company for Pharmaceuticals.
During the meeting, the minister asserted the need for localising the pharmaceutical industries in Egypt in order to attain self-sufficiency, and then export abroad, according to Ministry of Health Spokesman Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar.
The pharmaceutical industry is one of the pillars of Egyptian national security, Abdel-Ghaffar added.
He pointed out that the recently opened large pharmaceutical factories have placed Egypt among the major countries in the field of pharmaceutical industries.
According to the WHO, the number of diabetics worldwide is 422 million, and is expected to reach 500 million by 2030.
Seventeen percent of Egyptian adults aged 20 to 79 have diabetes, which means that Egypt ranks 9th among countries with the highest cases of diabetes.
Egypt is expected to rise to the 8th rank on the same scale by 2030.
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