“Last year, Hungary entered the list of the world’s 20 largest pharmaceuticals industry exporters in 19th place, in which Teva plays a significant role”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said in Debrecen.

At the inauguration ceremony of the Teva pharmaceuticals plant’s new, five-billion-forint (EUR 15.5 million) facility, Mr. Szijjártó said that the Hungarian pharmaceuticals industry is also competitive by international standards: last year, 84 percent of the pharmaceuticals produced here were marketed abroad.

“The share of the pharmaceuticals sector is expanding dynamically: last year, the number of people employed within the industry increased by 17 percent to 32 thousand”, pointed out the Minister, who called the pharmaceuticals industry one of the determining sectors of the 21st century, which also plays an important role in the Hungarian economy.

According to Mr. Szijjártó, the success of the pharmaceuticals industry is one of the guarantors of the transformation of the Hungarian economy from a production-orientated economy into an economy that is driven by research & development.

“In the latter, the pharmaceuticals industry also plays an important role with relation to the fact that the sector spends the highest proportion of its turnover on innovation”, he added, adding that last year the production value of the Hungarian pharmaceuticals industry was 880 billion forints (EUR 2.7bn).

“In Central European comparison, the Hungarian pharmaceuticals industry is the most competitive”, the Minister said, adding that over a third of the total research & development budget of the processing industry was spent by the pharmaceuticals industry last year.

According to Mr. Szijjártó, the fact that over 2500 students are studying pharmaceutical courses at Hungarian higher education institutions is a clear indication of the fact that the sector has a future.

The politician said it was most welcome that thanks to its 15.5-million-euro investment in Debrecen, the world’s first producer of generic pharmaceuticals will be doubling its active substance production capacity in the city and will be “significantly reinforcing Hungary’s position on the pharmaceuticals world map”.

Teva Hungary’s Director in charge of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Attila Mile told the press: The new, 1500 square metre facility will produce Caspofungin, the production technology of which was developed in-house. Caspofungin is used to treat and cure patients suffering from serious fungal infections, he explained.

Teva’s Vice-President for Global Production Luca Astarita recalled that Teva “bought itself into Hungary” in 1995, and since then has spent 350 billion forints (EUR 1bn) on development.

The region’s Member of Parliament Lajos Kósa (Fidesz) said Debrecen’s development is unstoppable, as indicated not only by the large number of newly arriving companies, but also the fact that enterprises with a long history in the city, such as Teva, are also in continuous development.

László Papp Fidesz-KDNP) added: Teva is the largest employer in Debrecen and has the highest turnover from among the enterprises operating in the city.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)