On July 31st, Teferi Melesse Desta, Ethiopian Consul-General in Guangzhou, visited GPHL, a leading Guangdong-based pharmaceutical enterprise. GPHL’s Chairman Li Chuyuan and Deputy General Manager Zhang Chunbo met the delegation.
A group photo of the delegation and GPHL’s senior staff members
Li Chuyuan briefed the delegation on GPHL’s recent development and said its total sales revenue had exceeded 100 billion yuan in 2017.
GPHL will continue to develop its four main business arms: pharmaceuticals, healthcare, marketing, and medical treatment, boosting three new business models, that is, e-commerce, capital finance and medical equipment, aiming to establish itself as a world-class company.
At present, Wanglaoji, GPHL’s flagship product, has entered more than 60 overseas markets. “We see a huge pharmaceutical market in Ethiopia, and we are looking forward to more cooperation with the country,” said Li.
Teferi Melesse Desta said he is aiming to promote the investment environment and opportunities in Ethiopia during this visit and welcomes GPHL to invest in the country’s pharmaceutical industry. “There is huge potential to strengthen the partnership between China and Ethiopia. And I hope we can push forward the development of medical industry based on our unique market demands,”he said.
Located in East Africa, Ethiopia is one of the oldest independent countries in both Africa and the rest of the world. It is also located along the “Belt and Road”, being a key distribution hub for surrounding countries. In recent years, the exchanges between China and Ethiopia have been increasingly frequent in terms of business and tourism.
In addition, Ethiopia is the first African country to emphasize the development of the pharmaceutical industry as one of its national strategies. Ethiopia has an enormous demand for medical treatment and medicines, but its local companies can satisfy only 20 percent of the market demand. Therefore, the Ethiopian pharmaceutical market relies heavily on imports, suggesting strong possibilities for international cooperation.
The visit of the Ethiopian CG in Guangzhou has deepened the mutual understanding between Ethiopia and GPHL and laid a solid foundation for further communication and cooperation.
Reported by Jasmine Yin, Rebecca Tao
Edited by Olivia Ouyang, Simon Haywood
