Kigali — The Director of Rwanda National Pharmaceutical Laboratory (LABOPHAR), Hormisidas Kambanda has disclosed that the laboratory will soon manufacture and distribute 700 litres of drip water (Serum) to the whole country and export to neighboring countries too.

According Kambanda, the initiative was proposed and agreed upon at the ministerial meeting held last month between the officials from the pharmaceutical industry and the ministry of health officials. He added that the supply of water drip would start at any time if the market becomes available. "We want to negotiate and cooperate with CAMERWA (Rwanda's Central Medical Stores) to stop buying water drips from outside countries like Kenya. This will inspire us to produce more of the solutions since the whole market will be made available to us," he said during an interview with The New Times last week.

Once the Rwanda pharmaceutical firm starts producing the water drips, it will start competing with other countries like Kenya. Kenya is the only country that produces water drips in East Africa and has dominated the market for a long time.

LABOPHAR also wants to supply its serum to countries like Uganda, Burundi, Eastern democratic republic of Congo and Tanzania which do not produce the product (water drip) and have to rely on the external purchase.

Kambanda noted that the move is likely to create increase of labour in Huye district as more people will be involved in the production process. The LABOPHAR currently supplies only the university hospital of Butare (CHUB), Kigali University Hospital (CHUK) and other neighboring health centres. The official however says that his firm still lacks enough packaging equipment.