Central and Eastern Europe is the gateway connecting the Eurasian continent and has a high degree of economic and trade cooperation compatibility with our country. In the field of medicine and health, my country has great potential for cooperation with Central and Eastern European countries: some Central and Eastern European countries have a good foundation in pharmaceutical industry and have certain advantages in biomedicine, chronic disease medication, dentistry, surgical equipment, orthopedic instruments, beauty and other products. You can consider focusing on introducing to meet the diversified needs of my country's domestic market; some high-quality Chinese companies and brands, such as high-end medical equipment, have also successfully entered the Central and Eastern European market, helping to improve the accessibility of local medical services. The two sides have great prospects for in-depth cooperation in the pharmaceutical and health industries.
industry development shows a diversified trend
industry advantages are obvious. The development level of the pharmaceutical and health industry in Central and Eastern European countries is different, and some countries have more advantages. From the perspective of the pharmaceutical industry, the strongest countries are Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and other countries. Taking Poland as an example, its pharmaceutical market is the largest in Central and Eastern Europe and the sixth largest market in the EU, with more than 200 pharmaceutical companies and nearly 100 pharmaceutical research institutes. Advanced generic drugs and competitive prices are the main competitive advantages of the country's biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. Through close cooperation with educational research institutions, its pharmaceutical R&D business is also developing steadily. Hungary has a large production scale and a long history of chemical raw materials and generic drugs, and is one of the most competitive industries in the country. Czech cardiovascular disease drugs, chemotherapy adjuvant drugs and biotechnology for the treatment of cancer are at the world's advanced level. Some countries also have unique characteristics in the development of the medical device industry. For example, Poland is the second largest medical device market in Central and Eastern Europe, with a market size of 2.5 billion euros, and its export volume increased from 790 million euros in 2014 to 2.22 billion euros in 2018, and it has unique advantages in orthopedics, dentistry, surgical equipment, etc.; Slovakia is highly competitive in medical auxiliary equipment, prosthetics, dental equipment, etc.
has a high degree of foreign dependence. Although traditional pharmaceutical powers in Central and Eastern Europe, such as Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovenia, etc., are strong in their own strength, overall, multinational pharmaceutical companies occupy a high market share in the above countries, and most countries have serious foreign dependence. For example, Romania still faces a large burden on drug use such as AIDS, tuberculosis, and non-communicable diseases, and the supply of basic drugs is highly dependent on the external supply. Albania's medicines mainly come from European and American countries, with domestic production accounting for only about 10% of the market share, and most of the main medical devices are imported. North Macedonia also has a large proportion of imports of pharmaceutical products. According to statistics from the National Bank of North Macedonia, the import volume of medical and pharmaceutical products in North Macedonia in 2018 was US$221 million, a year-on-year increase of 28%; the export volume was US$104 million, a year-on-year increase of 5%. Most of North Macedonian drugs are purchased and imported from abroad through domestic drug wholesalers. Medical electronic equipment in hospitals and health centers is also mostly imported through international and domestic bidding.
is unique in the sub-sector. Some Central and Eastern European countries have performed very well in some sub-sectors, and have certain characteristics in biotechnology, electronic health, elderly care, etc. For example, Lithuania's biotechnology is developing rapidly. In 2014, biotechnology exports increased by 17%, and about 80% of biotechnology products were exported to more than 100 countries and regions around the world. The main markets are the United States, Israel, Japan, Germany and the United Kingdom. Estonia is a pioneer in the use of electronic health record systems. In 2008, Estonia became the first country in the world to implement a national electronic health record system, recording nearly all residents’ medical history from birth to death. In addition to electronic health records, Estonia has created an electronic prescription service, and 97% of the country's prescriptions are digital prescriptions. These "small and beautiful" sub-sectors have become a comparative advantage for foreign cooperation between Central and Eastern European countries.
Traditional medicine has become a brilliant business card. Hungary, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Montenegro and other countries have established a good foundation in traditional Chinese medicine cooperation. Hungary's traditional Chinese medicine industry has a good foundation for development. In December 2013, the relevant laws on traditional Chinese medicine practice were officially passed by the parliament. In 2015, Hungary officially promulgated the implementation rules for traditional Chinese medicine legislation and came into effect, becoming the first country in Europe to legislate for traditional Chinese medicine.In 2016, the Hungarian government issued an EU medical license to traditional Chinese medicine, ending the history of Hungarian traditional Chinese medicine requiring medical practice under the supervision of Western medicine. Lithuania implemented the "Supplementary Alternative Medical Act" in 2020, covering treatments with significant efficacy such as traditional Chinese medicine and Tibetan medicine. The Czech Republic is also a key country that promotes the development of traditional Chinese medicine, and acupuncture has developed in the Czech Republic for a long time. In 2015, the first traditional Chinese medicine center in Central and Eastern Europe was completed at the University Hospital of Heradec-Klalove, Czech Republic, becoming a traditional Chinese medicine cooperation platform built by China and Czech Republic. In 2017, the Czech Republic promulgated the "Traditional Medicine Non-practice Medicine Act". In April 2019, the Chinese Medicine Center was transferred to the capital Prague, providing medical treatment convenience for nearly 3,000 Chinese and overseas Chinese living in Prague. In recent years, with the deepening of pragmatic cooperation between China and Montenegro in the field of traditional Chinese medicine, the Montenegro Parliament passed a law in 2015 to give traditional Chinese medicine treatment a legal status as alternative medical treatment. The "China-Mermanentegro Traditional Chinese Medicine Center" was unveiled in Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro. Cooperation in the field of traditional Chinese medicine has become a dazzling business card for China-Central and Eastern Europe cooperation.
faces challenges that cannot be ignored
industry urgently needs transformation and upgrading. Transformation and upgrading is an urgent need for the pharmaceutical and health industries in most countries in Central and Eastern Europe, among which the problem of weak R&D is more prominent. The problem with Poland's pharmaceutical and medical device industries is that they focus on production, and there is still a big gap in innovation and research and development compared with the EU. In addition, Hungary, another generic drug powerhouse, is also facing the problem of industrial transformation and upgrading, and its pharmaceutical industry is turning to the production of biopharmaceuticals and other higher-value products. More countries are still in the stage of lack of localized production capacity. With the continuous improvement of awareness of industrial transformation and upgrading, countries are also formulating corresponding plans to improve the level of medical care.
Aging is more serious, and many Central and Eastern European countries have serious aging problems. Take Slovenia as an example. In the past 30 years, life expectancy for men has increased by 9.5 years and life expectancy for women has increased by 7.3 years. Poland, Albania and other countries have also proposed development plans to provide high-quality services to the elderly. The trend of aging will become a factor that cannot be ignored in the next step to improve the quality and level of medical services.
Medical insurance funding is tight. Although Central and Eastern European countries generally have good medical insurance levels, many countries still face greater pressure on medical insurance costs. Croatia is one of the EU countries with the highest expenses for medical products (mainly drugs), with drug expenses accounting for 28.5% of total medical expenses in 2015, while the EU average was only 18.5%. To this end, the K-Government has reduced medical expenses by changing pricing and repayment. Due to limited health expenses, Poland has very limited affordability for other medical services except for basic medicines, auxiliary medical equipment, recuperation, and specific dental treatment programs. Therefore, under the premise of having basic medical insurance levels, Central and Eastern European countries still need to improve their security capabilities and service quality.
actively explores the prospects and tempting
introduces high-quality medical products. Some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and other countries have good foundation in pharmaceutical industry and have certain advantages in biomedicine, chronic disease medication, dentistry, surgical equipment, orthopedic instruments, beauty and other products. You can consider focusing on introducing to meet the diversified needs of my country's market. Increasing the introduction of products will also help achieve trade balance and promote mutually beneficial and win-win development.
Actively explore the Central and Eastern European and EU markets. Many Central and Eastern European countries are also EU member states and implement EU unified quality standards and access requirements for drugs and medical devices. At present, some high-quality Chinese companies and brands, such as high-end medical equipment, have successfully entered Central and Eastern Europe, helping to improve the accessibility of local medical services. In the future, Central and Eastern European countries will continue to improve the quality level of medical services and control costs, which will provide space for access to medical products with excellent quality and reasonable prices. In addition, the two sides will work together to explore the Central and Eastern European markets to better enter the EU market and achieve optimal allocation of resources and maximize benefits.
Cooperation in the field of traditional medicine is worth looking forward to. In recent years, cooperation in the field of traditional medicine is in full swing. Central and Eastern European countries represented by Hungary, Lithuania, Czech Republic and Montenegro have made good attempts in the legislation or practice of traditional Chinese medicine, laying a good foundation for the in-depth development of traditional Chinese medicine in the region. Continue to dig deep into the cooperation potential in this field, drive the application of traditional Chinese medicine with traditional Chinese medicine practice, promote product registration and recognition of standards, and create opportunities for the access and use of traditional medical products.
"China-Central and Eastern Europe Cooperation" is an important part of China-Europe cooperation. It should be based on pragmatism and make mutually beneficial cooperation deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. At present, my country still has few information channels for cooperation projects such as market opportunities, investment, and technology transfer in the medical and health industry in Central and Eastern Europe, the overall awareness of Chinese brands is not high, and the bilateral economic and trade cooperation deficit has increased. In the future, we can make efforts to strengthen cooperation from the following aspects: focus on strengthening dialogue and cooperation mechanisms in the pharmaceutical and health industry; deepen cooperation and brand building of Chinese pharmaceutical companies in the trade, investment, R&D and other fields of CEE; continue to increase the development of traditional Chinese medicine in the Central and Eastern European markets; and promote the entry of advanced products, technologies and projects in Central and Eastern European countries into China.
(Note: The 17 Central and Eastern European countries include Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, North Macedonia, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Greece)
(provided by the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Medicine and Health Products)
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