Pharmaceutical exports were high on the agenda at the 33rd Semashko Russian Pharmaceutical Forum in St Petersburg. Russia shipped $1.3 billion worth of drugs abroad in 2025, and industry players are optimistic about continued growth, although they note a lack of government support measures.
“Our contribution to pharmaceutical exports in 2025 amounted to about 150 billion roubles. In principle, every tenth shipment was supported by our measures – both financial and non‑financial,” said Andrey Dobritsa, director for export support of pharmaceutical and medical industries at the Russian Export Centre. He noted that export volumes could grow in 2026, but this would require an expansion of government support measures.
Generium chief executive Daniil Talyansky, for his part, gave a positive forecast for export growth in 2026 but stressed the need for a long‑term strategy. “Our path is long. You have to set yourself up for it. It must become a strategic part of every company’s plans – only then can we expect exports to grow,” he said.
Ellina Ruzanova, deputy director for development at the St Petersburg Research Institute of Vaccines and Sera; Alexander Bykov, director of the health economics department at R‑Pharm; and Vadim Yatsuk, chief executive of Sotex, also said they expect export potential to increase.
“Ultimately, its volume will reach the targets set by the Pharma‑2030 programme. All the necessary conditions have been created for this,” Alexander Bykov said.
However, according to experts, current support measures are still insufficient. Exporting organisations would like, for example, compensation for transport costs and expenses incurred during product registration.
Earlier, Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov said that developing exports of domestic drugs is a priority for his ministry. Russian pharmaceutical products are exported annually to more than 150 countries. The main buyers include Kazakhstan, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Algeria, Lithuania, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Tajikistan.
