Pyongsu Joint Venture Company
Encyclopedia
Pyongsu Joint Venture Company, Ltd is a Pharmaceutical company
Pharmaceutical company
The pharmaceutical industry develops, produces, and markets drugs licensed for use as medications. Pharmaceutical companies are allowed to deal in generic and/or brand medications and medical devices...
jointly founded in Pyongyang
Pyongyang
Pyongyang is the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea, and the largest city in the country. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River and, according to preliminary results from the 2008 population census, has a population of 3,255,388. The city was...
, DPRK (2002).
Founders & Shareholders
- Pyongyang Pharmaceutical Company
- Ministry of Public Health (DPRK)
- Northern Development Consortium (NDC) – Majority Shareholder
History
Dr. Tony MichellTony Michell
Tony Michell is a British businessman, entrepreneur, and pioneer for early Korean development. He has worked with the Korea Development Institute to create policies for the government since 1978. Dr. Tony Michell is considered a prime reference point on DPRK issues, and has been featured regularly...
was responsible for the first wave of foreign investment in the 1990’s as the Vice Chairman of Northern Development Consortium. He and Toni Hauswirth negotiated a JV during the early 2000s with NDC Pharmaceutical as the foreign partner. In February 2007, Hong Kong based Parazelsus Ltd., specialising in pharmaceuticals distribution, became the main shareholder of NDCP.
Management
Felix AbtFelix Abt
Felix Abt , "a well-known North Korean affairs specialist", is considered a prime reference point on investment and business issues in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea...
, PyongSu's 3rd president succeeded in preventing the closure of the company by turning the heavily loss-making operation into a profit-making one. During his term PyongSu became the first North Korean pharmaceutical factory to attain GMP
Good Manufacturing Practice
"Good manufacturing practice" or "GMP" are practices and the systems required to be adapted in pharmaceutical manufacturing, quality control, quality system covering the manufacture and testing of pharmaceuticals or drugs including active pharmaceutical ingredients, diagnostics, foods,...
(a universally recognized quality standard in the pharmaceutical industry as defined by the WHO), and repeatedly inspected and confirmed by the WHO. It also became the first ever North Korean company to participate in tender competitions to win contracts against foreign competitors from China, India, and Germany. With an increasing generation of cash-flow, the company has expanded and profitably operate pharmacies and sales outlets throughout the DPRK.
Towards the end of 2008 managing director Felix Abt, 53, explained that the company now enjoys:
1) A broad product portfolio which recently included Anthelmintic
Anthelmintic
Anthelmintics or antihelminthics are drugs that expel parasitic worms from the body, by either stunning or killing them. They may also be called vermifuges or vermicides .-Pharmaceutical classes:...
and anti-hypertensive
Antihypertensive
The antihypertensives are a class of drugs that are used to treat hypertension . Evidence suggests that reduction of the blood pressure by 5 mmHg can decrease the risk of stroke by 34%, of ischaemic heart disease by 21%, and reduce the likelihood of dementia, heart failure, and mortality from...
drugs.
2) A good reputation as a quality and service-minded company in the DPRK that led to the recognition as the "model company" of the domestic pharmaceutical industry by authorities and customers
3) A competitiveness that continues to help win supply contracts against international competition, thanks to a well trained and dedicated Korean workforce.
4) Good market penetration
Market penetration
Market penetration is8th growth strategies of the Product-Market Growth Matrix defined by Ansoff. Market penetration occurs when a company enters/penetrates a market with current products. The best way to achieve this is by gaining competitors' customers...
thanks to the company’s wholesaling and distribution arm (that not only handles PyongSu’s own products but also a wide variety of complementary and alternative products at affordable prices imported directly from reliable GMP-manufacturers) as well as its own profitable retail outlets (pharmacies) in well-chosen locations
5) Strong double-digit growth rate as well as sustainability and profitability as a consequence of the afore-mentioned 4 points
Now that PyongSu has become one of the DPRK’s most successful joint venture companies ever, the board of directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
appointed Remy Lardinois, 32, as the new Managing Director succeeding Felix Abt who was elected Vice Chairman of the board of directors as of March 1, 2009. Dr. Ju Zhong Ho continues to serve as the Chairman of the board and O Song Gun maintains his post as Deputy Managing Director.