MoH, Swiss drug maker Roche hold talks over joint cooperation

The UAE Ministry of Health held talks with Swiss drug maker Roche over mechanism of re-energising joint programmes for upgrading pharmaceutical industries and training health professional in the sector.
The talks were attended on the UAE side by Ali bin Shakr, Director General of Health Ministry and Executive Director of Medical Practices and Licensing Dr. Amin Al Amiri. Swiss Ambassador Wolfgang Amadeus Bruelhart, General Manager of Roche in the Gulf Raphael Kandalaft, Director of Roche Gulf Dr. Hashem Al Bakr attended the talks from the Swiss side.
Dr. Al Amiri said the talks focused on how the Swiss drug maker Roche can enhance preventive programmes in the UAE and the Gulf in areas like anti-viral Tamiflu.
He said that the Registration and Drug Control Department was instructed to speed up procedures for registration of new medicines like the Roche-made Tamiflu tablets and syrup for children so to be available in the UAE within the coming few days.
“The Ministry of Health does not tolerate any infringement of the intellectual property rights in regard to patent protection for pharmaceutical products to stimulate world drug makers to invest in the UAE and contribute in leveraging medical and curative services," he affirmed.
Swiss Ambassador Wolfgang Amadeus Bruelhart praised the Ministry of Health's efforts to foster creative investment ventures in the local health sector.