HERAT, Afghanistan — A ban on pharmaceutical imports from Pakistan has accelerated the growth of Afghanistan’s domestic pharmaceutical industry, with manufacturers in Herat now supplying a significant share of the country’s medicine demand.
According to the Herat Chamber of Industries and Mines, 18 pharmaceutical and medical equipment manufacturing companies are currently operating in the province, producing a wide range of medicines for the domestic market.
Abdul Nasser Amin, head of the chamber, told Khate-Nakhost that interest in establishing new pharmaceutical factories continues to grow. He said several additional manufacturers are prepared to begin operations if industrial land and a stable electricity supply become available.
Among the province’s largest pharmaceutical producers is Etook Pharma, which has invested approximately $23 million in its manufacturing facilities.
Mohammad Hassin Sharifzadeh, the company’s director, said the factory currently operates seven production lines and employs more than 200 people across its headquarters and provincial distribution offices.
He said the company’s products meet international quality standards and can compete with medicines manufactured in Europe.
Factory owners say the restriction on pharmaceutical imports from Pakistan has created new opportunities for local manufacturers, allowing Afghan companies to expand production and supply a much larger portion of the country’s domestic medicine requirements.
However, access to raw materials remains one of the industry’s biggest challenges.
Manufacturers say they previously imported many pharmaceutical raw materials through Pakistan and Iran’s Bandar Abbas port. Recent regional developments, however, have disrupted these supply routes, forcing companies to increasingly rely on the Hairatan border crossing as an alternative gateway for imports.
Despite these logistical difficulties, Etook Pharma says it plans to increase its total investment in pharmaceutical manufacturing from $23 million to $50 million in the coming years.
The factory currently produces syrups, oral drops and pharmaceutical powders, and has recently launched a new injectable medicine production line, further expanding its manufacturing capacity.
The company also employs a significant number of women, particularly in its packaging department.
Among them is Zahra Hosseini, a 27-year-old laboratory technician who recently returned to Afghanistan after living in Iran for three years.
She returned to Herat ten months ago and has been working at Etook Pharma for the past eight months, where she conducts laboratory testing, identifies raw materials, and performs quality control procedures—work similar to what she previously carried out at a pharmaceutical factory in Iran.
Hosseini said she is pleased to continue her career in Afghanistan’s pharmaceutical sector after returning home.
She believes Afghan women have considerable professional potential across various industries but says greater employment opportunities need to be made available to them.
Herat Industrial Park is one of Afghanistan’s largest industrial zones and is home to approximately 1,350 manufacturing factories.
According to the Herat Chamber of Industries and Mines, these factories collectively employ around 165,000 workers, although the figure fluctuates throughout the year depending on seasonal production levels and industrial activity.
Despite the rapid expansion of manufacturing in Herat, industry leaders say the import of raw materials and ongoing transportation and logistics challenges remain among the most significant obstacles to further industrial growth.
