The State Pharmaceutical and Medical Supply Corporation Limited (SPHMC) has begun importing medicines and distributing them to health facilities in the atolls, marking the start of the company’s operational role in the national pharmaceutical supply chain.
Health Minister Abdulla Nazim Ibrahim confirmed the development during an appearance on state media’s Raajje Miadhu programme on Monday night. He said the company has now started bringing in medicines and supplying them to island health facilities.
“Now the company’s work has started. Importation of medicines has started. The company will share progress soon. Some of the drugs are already being imported and supplied to the islands,” Nazim said.
SPHMC was established on 9 September last year as part of efforts to reorganise how medicines are procured and distributed in the Maldives. According to the minister, creating a dedicated pharmaceutical company allows the government to better identify systemic issues in the sector and assign specialised teams to address them.
Shortages of medicines for common illnesses have been a recurring public concern in the Maldives, with frequent complaints about stockouts and multiple related issues raised in Parliament. These challenges continued even after SPHMC was created. At the time, the company’s Managing Director Dr Shah Mahir said the delays were due to the time required to transfer pharmaceutical responsibilities from the State Trading Organization (STO) to the new entity.
STO, a fully state-owned enterprise, has historically managed the bulk import and sale of medicines, medical consumables and equipment in the Maldives. The company also operates pharmacies across all inhabited islands.
Earlier this year, STO began transferring its pharmacy operations to SPHMC as part of the restructuring of the pharmaceutical supply system.
The government has also introduced several changes to procurement practices aimed at improving access to medicines. In July 2024, authorities announced that medicines approved by European health regulators would be introduced to the Maldivian market for the first time. The government also said it had begun purchasing medicines through a quality-based pooled procurement mechanism developed in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
