- The financial results published on September 1 by the drug manufacturer, Cipla Quality Chemicals Ltd, reported a more than 50% reduction in annual losses.
- Losses decreased from 23.07 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending March 2020 to 10.5 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending March 2021.
The financial results published on September 1 by the Ugandan drug manufacturer, Cipla Quality Chemicals Ltd, reported a more than 50% reduction in annual losses. Losses decreased from 23.07 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending March 2020 to 10.5 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending March 2021. The report states that due to the Zambian government’s unpaid bills for supplied medicines, increased general and administrative expenses, and rising financial costs, the company will not be able to pay a dividend to its shareholders for the second consecutive year.
According to a company spokesperson, Cipla has a receivable from the Zambian government valued at 42.9 billion shillings, which was fully impaired after recording an additional impairment provision of 9.1 billion shillings during the current period. Although the Zambian government has continued to acknowledge this debt to the company, payment has remained overdue.
The company also reported an overall 41% increase in general and administrative expenses, primarily attributed to intensified sales promotion efforts to support aggressive expansion campaigns, improvements to the staff medical scheme, and normal salary adjustments. COVID-19 safety protocols also contributed to the cost increase.
Cipla’s share price on the Uganda Securities Exchange traded at an average of 100 shillings, compared to 256.5 shillings per share at its IPO in 2018. Cipla’s primary objective, established in 2005, is the production of WHO-prequalified, quality first-line treatments for HIV/AIDS and malaria. The company also produces two WHO-recommended first-line therapies for hepatitis B. It has also received regulatory approval from Uganda’s National Drug Authority (NDA) for the new first-line triple antiretroviral therapy for men, tenofovir lamivudine dolutegravir.