Tridem Pharma Cote d’Ivoire, a subsidiary of the Tridem Pharma Group, based in Toulouse, France has officially launched in Abidjan, the Ivorian economic capital, its maiden distribution hub for pharmaceutical products in Africa.
Thursday’s launch of the activities of this subsidiary was held on the sidelines of the official opening of the 21st International Pharmaceutical Forum, which will be held on October13-16, 2021 on the shores of the Ebrie Lagoon.
This pharmaceutical distribution hub, the first of its kind in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa, has a capacity of 3,300 pallets with a target of 12,000 pallets by 2023.
This should enable distribution flows to go beyond the French-speaking zone to English-speaking countries, such as Ghana and Nigeria.
In the short term, the group plans to serve Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Togo.
Senegal and Cameroon will be served later in the supply chain.
Mr. Gino Formini, the General Manager of the Tridem Pharma Group, showed that this platform aims to directly supply the local and sub-regional markets.
The General Manager of Tridem Pharma Cote d’Ivoire, Hyacinthe Kouakou, noted that this pharmaceutical center located in Port-Bouet, a seaside town in the south of Abidjan, will reduce the cost of freight for retailers, due to the proximity of pharmaceutical products.
Mr. William Wu, the president of Fosun Pharma Group, the parent company of Tridem, said that in their approach, they have been strengthened by the unwavering support of the Ivorian government in the implementation of the project.
This innovative project consolidates Cote d’Ivoire’s place as a major player in the regional pharmaceutical industry, by opening the way to export to other markets on the continent.
The Director General of the Ivorian Pharmaceutical Regulatory Authority, Hassan Coulibaly, said he was pleased that this pharmaceutical hub will shorten delivery times and increase the availability of medicines.
“This is undoubtedly a bonus in the Ivorian pharmaceutical microcosm, and even at the sub-regional level,” he said, adding that with this relocation in Cote d’Ivoire, pharmacists will have an easier time disposing of their stocks and will pay less logistics costs.
This pole is dedicated to the distribution of pharmaceutical products, para-pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
This should enable the company to distribute its products on the continent.
Established in 1986, Tridem Pharma is a major player in the fields of business, regulatory, medical promotion and pharmaceutical distribution in Africa.
A Fosun Pharma Group company since 2017, the group has strengthened its leadership position in French-speaking Africa over the last three years and has undergone strong geographic expansion, particularly in English-speaking countries on the continent.
With 900 employees in some thirty African countries, France and Asia, it is present in Africa through 9 subsidiaries (Senegal, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania and two in Cote d’Ivoire), and 8 branches.
Its distribution activities cover nearly 90 percent of Africa and the Middle East, i.e., a total of 35 countries.
Since its merger into the Fosun Pharma Group, Tridem Pharma has realised more than CFA 135 billion turnovers in 2020, against CFA 60 billion in 2017.
AP/ls/fss/as/APA