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GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), the world's biggest manufacturer of AIDS drugs, has issued a voluntary licence to a South African drug firm to make generic copies of its patented drugs, according to a local newspaper, Business Day.
The agreement with GSK will allow local manufacturer Feza Pharmaceuticals to import generic versions of GSK's antiretroviral drugs Lamivudine and Zidovudine, and a combination of the two.
Once Feza has obtained regulatory approval for its manufacturing sites it will begin making the drugs locally.
GSK's general manager for pharmaceuticals in South Africa, Michael Spector, said the voluntary licences would "improve access to medicines in developing countries".
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions