In Beijing
Wenqin Zhu                                                        
Phone: +86 10 5860 3130                                
Email: wzhu@ifc.org

In Hong Kong
Andrew Mak
Phone: +852 2509 8110
Email: amak@ifc.org

In Washington, D.C.
Carmen Powell
Phone: +1 202 473 4982
Email: cpowell@ifc.org


Shanghai, November 10, 2006 — The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, today announced plans to provide a RMB 320 million local currency loan to Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceuticals Company, a leading Chinese manufacturer and distributor of Chinese and Western medicines. IFC’s loan to Fosun Pharma will be funded by the forthcoming RMB 870 million Panda Bond issue, IFC second such transaction.  The loan will support China’s pharmaceutical sector reforms, enable Fosun Pharma to expand production of its anti-malaria products, and strengthen the company’s initiatives to build capacity and standardize environmental, health and safety management systems throughout its subsidiaries.

“This transaction is especially important because it will allow Fosun Pharma to expand production of its anti-malaria product,” said Dimitris Tsitsiragos, IFC’s Director for Global Manufacturing and Services.  “IFC is looking at other private sector mechanisms to address diseases affecting large populations around the world.”

“IFC’s partnership with Fosun Pharma is aimed at bringing jobs and investment to interior, less-developed parts of China,” said Richard Ranken, IFC’s Director for East Asia and the Pacific. “Through this loan IFC is able to support a domestic Chinese company seeking to adopt international standards in environmental and social sustainability.” Fosun Pharma is expected to hire an environment, health and safety officer to supervise and improve standards in its subsidiaries.

Many of Fosun Pharma's subsidiaries are located in the west, southwest and other interior regions of China. IFC's financing to Fosun Pharma will support a local company as it aligns with the overall reform agenda for the country’s pharmaceutical industry, which includes the protection of intellectual property laws and fostering the development of innovative local companies.  

The loan will also support the expansion of Guilin Pharma, a subsidiary of Fosun Pharma and one of the few pharmaceutical companies worldwide that has prequalified for supplying Artemisinin-based combination therapies to the World Health Organization. Since 2001, the WHO has been promoting the use of such therapies in highly endemic countries, where the malaria-causing parasite has become resistant to other drugs.

“We are grateful for this support from IFC,” said Fosun Pharma President Qunbin Wang. “With the support of IFC and other international partners, Fosun Pharma can move further toward our goal of becoming a leading Chinese pharmaceutical company with a strong international reputation.”

About IFC

The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, is the largest multilateral provider of financing for private enterprise in developing countries. IFC finances private sector investments, mobilizes capital in international financial markets, facilitates trade, helps clients improve social and environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice to businesses and governments. From its founding in 1956 through FY06, IFC has committed more than $56 billion of its own funds for private sector investments in the developing world and mobilized an additional $25 billion in syndications for 3,531 companies in 140 developing countries. With the support of funding from donors, it has also provided more than $1 billion in technical assistance and advisory services. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

About Fosun Pharma

Fosun Pharma, owned 49 percent by Fosun Group, is engaged in the development, manufacturing and distribution of Western chemical medicines, traditional Chinese medicines and active pharmaceutical ingredients.  Its products have leading market positions in China in the treatment of gynecological and liver related diseases, diabetes and malaria.