Belgium Pharmaceutical Market Size

Belgium Pharmaceutical Market Analysis

The Belgium pharmaceutical market is anticipated to register growth with a CAGR of 4.35% over the forecast period (2022 - 2027).

Due to the early intermittent lockdowns, Covid-19 has had a major negative influence on the expansion of the pharmaceutical market in Belgium. Later, by importing drugs for COVID-19, the Belgian government is attempting to make up for lost time and speed up its pharmaceutical business. For instance, Belgium has committed to purchasing 10,000 courses of Paxlovid and molnupiravir, two Covid-19 oral antiviral drugs made by Pfizer and Merck (MSD), respectively, in January 2022. The projects and activities launched by a public-private partnership that focused on research and development for COVID-19 medications and treatment regimens are also contributing to the market's expansion. For instance, the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) public-private collaboration will support the launch of CARE (Corona Accelerated R&D in Europe) in August 2020 to hasten the discovery and development of critically required drugs to treat SARS-CoV-2. VRI-Inserm (French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, Paris, France), Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson (Beerse, Belgium), and others are leading the 5-year CARE project, which has 37 partners from Belgium and other countries. Additionally, 32 clinical trials studies for pharmaceutical goods and six clinical trials for vaccines are now underway in Belgium, according to data from the Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products (FAMHP), updated in December 2020. Such research initiatives will stimulate the expansion of Belgium's pharmaceutical industry and result in the creation of new medications and vaccines.

Belgium is expected to hold significant share in pharmaceutical market in Europe. Additionally, of all the European Union countries, it is one of the high investing countries on pharmaceutical research and development per resident. For instance, the news from November 2020 states that the Belgian chemicals and pharmaceuticals sector is the greatest investor in research and development (R&D) in the European Union. With an R&D intensity of 17.7 percent (the ratio between R&D spending and added value), Belgium chemicals and pharmaceuticals are ranked first, ahead of Germany, Sweden, and France. Therefore, it is anticipated that the creation of novel pharmaceuticals as a result of Belgium's increasing R&D spending will fuel the market's expansion. Furthermore, the growing prevalence of chronic diseases in Belgium is anticipated to fuel the expansion of the country's pharmaceutical industry. For instance, according to Globocan 2020, there were 30,079 cancer-related fatalities and 83,267 new cases of cancer in Belgium. Additionally, the International Diabetes Federation estimates that 404,900 people in Belgium have diabetes as of February 2022. Because chronic diseases are so common in Belgium, more people will likely need pharmaceuticals, which is anticipated to fuel this market's expansion. As chronic diseases disproportionately affect the elderly population, Belgium's growing geriatric population helps fuel market expansion. For instance, the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations estimates that in Belgium there are currently 2,193 people aged 65 and older, which represents 19% of the country's population, and that number will likely increase to nearly 2,734 by the year 2030, representing 23% of the population. Over time, it is anticipated that the growing weight of the elderly population would accelerate the expansion of pharmaceuticals. Therefore, the rising research and development expenditure and rising prevalence of chronic diseases such as cancers and diabetes, among others are expected to drive the growth of Belgium pharmaceutical market over the forecast period.

However, socioeconomic inequality is expected to restraint the market growth in Belgium.