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Need to prioritise pharma in all FTAs, support for MSMEs to boost pharma trade: Sanjaya Mariwala
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Shardul Nautiyal, Mumbai
August 19 , 2025
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There is a need to prioritise pharma in all Foreign Trade Agreements (FTAs) and support for smaller exporters among other Government priority initiatives to boost pharma trade, according to Sanjaya Mariwala, executive chairman and managing director of OmniActive Health Technologies.
He recommends ongoing trade negotiations must include dedicated pharma chapters covering regulatory cooperation, faster clearances, and mutually recognized quality standards. Support for MSME exporters should include expansion of the Duty Drawback Scheme, easing access to concessional export credit, and consider a “Pharma Export Innovation Fund” to help MSMEs diversify and innovate.
India has already signed trade agreements with the UK and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). These can open doors for more pharma exports. Mariwala suggests that India should act quickly to conclude talks with other regions like the European Union (EU), Latin America, and Africa.
Experts also echo that there is a need to change the perspective of being seen as the cost leader and start earning credit for quality and innovation. That shift depends heavily on building a robust research and development ecosystem. It means investing in new drug formulations, advanced delivery systems, better packaging, and smarter manufacturing.
Mariwala informs that India’s new research development and Innovation scheme, supported by a corpus of Rs. 1 lakh crore, is a timely step in this direction. By offering long-term and reasonable funding for innovation from a dedicated fund under the ANRF, it provides much-needed opportunity to private enterprises and deep tech start-ups to take the bull by the horns. But for its initiative to be a total success, the Government of India has to play an active role involving academia, industry, as well as other major stakeholders, in the process. Our scientists and engineers have the capability to turn leads into tangible outcomes, as long as they get the right support.
US President Donald Trump has recently signalled that tariffs on pharmaceutical imports could eventually climb as high as 250 per cent, marking the steepest potential rate he has proposed so far.
Trade experts have been suggesting that India needs to act decisively to safeguard its position in the American marketplace following US tariff policy on pharma imports and diversify into other strategic markets. Penetration of the European, Latin American, African, and ASEAN markets can ensure that India retains its position as the pharmacy of the world.
Indian pharma exports to the US touched USD 9.8 billion in FY25, constituting 40 per cent of our total pharmaceutical exports. With the imposition of the tariffs, prices increase, margins shrink, and being competitive gets more challenging, especially for MSMEs that lack the buffer to absorb such blows.
Mariwala further explains that the government and industry should start talks with the US to seek exemptions for essential medicines and APIs. A joint review mechanism or a phased roll-out could mitigate near-term disruption. The Government of India should invest in laboratories, certification centres, as well as digital technologies, and facilitate clinical testing of international quality. Simultaneously, the clearance procedure should be quick, streamlined, with minimum paperwork and delay due to red tape. It will enable firms to get innovations into the market sooner, as well as remain competent on a global scale.
Trade experts suggest that India must raise this issue at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and other global forums, alongside other countries dependent on generic exports.
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