ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq will open four new pharmaceutical factories specializing in cancer treatment, including one in the Kurdistan Region’s Sulaimani province, as part of a broader strategy to boost domestic drug production to 50 percent by the end of this year, a top health advisor to the Iraqi premier told Rudaw on Tuesday. Hammoudi al-Lami, health affairs advisor to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, said the Sulaimani-based facility is owned by Pioneer Company for Pharmaceutical Industries, a leading private-sector firm in Iraq. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Sulaimani, Pioneer Co. has a portfolio of over 250 branded and generic medications and plays a critical role in the country’s pharmaceutical sector. It is also a major government supplier and aims to bolster Iraq’s pharmaceutical security through high-quality and affordable medicines. Lami emphasized that the Sulaimani factory is part of a broader strategy to reduce reliance on imported cancer medications and strengthen healthcare infrastructure. He also noted that the Kurdistan Region’s share of medical supplies is "protected," with medicine distributed "equally among all provinces,” including in the Region. Expanding cancer drug production In addition to the facility in Sulaimani, three other cancer-focused pharmaceutical factories are under development. Two of these factories are in Baghdad, including one projected to be the largest cancer drug facility in Iraq, with a construction cost exceeding $60 million. A fourth facility in Iraq’s southernmost Basra province is also nearing completion and is expected to become operational before the end of this year, according to Lami. All four factories “will comply with international manufacturing standards, including those outlined by the United States and British Pharmacopoeias,” he affirmed, detailing that the facilities will produce treatments for “breast and prostate cancers, as well as certain types of leukemia and other blood cancers.” The Iraqi premier’s health advisor further highlighted Iraq’s significant progress in domestic drug production over the past three years. “At the end of 2022, domestic drug production covered only 9 percent of our needs, but it has now risen to more than 38 percent, and we expect it to reach 50 percent in the next six months,” he said, adding that “Iraq has already achieved self-sufficiency in the production of intravenous fluids and syringes” and that over 2,000 types of medicines are currently produced in local facilities. The number of active pharmaceutical factories in Iraq has grown from 22 to 34, all operating at full capacity, he said. “An additional 17 factories are under construction, with completion rates between 70 and 90 percent.” Moreover, the Iraqi health ministry “has also received 178 new private-sector applications to build pharmaceutical and medical supply plants,” Lami noted. Rising cancer rates The expansion of cancer treatment facilities comes amid rising cancer rates across Iraq and the Kurdistan Region. In February 2025, Iraq’s Cancer Board reported 43,063 registered cases nationwide, including 1,922 children under 14. Childhood cancer, especially leukemia, is a growing concern, with an incidence rate of 11 per 100,000 in that age group. Meanwhile, the Kurdistan Region’s health ministry reported in November a doubling in cancer rates over the past decade. Erbil had the highest number of cases in the Region last year at 55 percent, followed by Sulaimani at 33 percent, and the northern provinces of Duhok and Halabja combined at 12 percent. Sulaimani’s cancer registration office in January reported over 3,000 new cases in 2024, including 201 children. Hiwa Hospital, the province’s only specialized cancer center, serves patients from across Iraq and the Kurdistan Region. Another cancer hospital opened in Duhok province in May, while Iraq’s northern Nineveh province is preparing to launch a facility in its provincial capital, Mosul.
