Bangladesh wants slice of AIDS drug pie

Bangladeshi pharmaceutical companies are eager to fill a gap in the manufacture of generic antiretroviral (ARVs) should India ban local production. Although playing a crucial part in supplying generic ARVs to developing countries, India could soon implement new legislation preventing the production of generic versions of the patented drugs. Companies in Bangladesh are already seeking the assistance of international organisations as partners in the supply of their drugs. A local newspaper, New Age, quoted the secretary-general of the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries, Nazmul Hassan, as saying: "We want organisations like Oxfam, WHO and UNICEF to come forward and understand the potentiality of Bangladesh's drug industry, as ... [we have been] producing anti-HIV and anti-cancer drugs for a couple of years."