Medis Group

Medis Group (“Medis”) is a prominent branded generic pharmaceuticals business in Tunisia and Algeria. Founded by Dr Lassaad Boujbel, Medis has a broad portfolio of quality, affordable medicines with strong recognition and trust among doctors and patients. Products range from oral solid pharmaceuticals targeting chronic diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure to sterile injectable pharmaceuticals, as well as branded medicines in therapy areas including pain, allergies and gastric reflux.

Medis’ strategy is based on innovation: it was the first pharma company to launch sterile products in North Africa, and has now built one of the first oncology laboratories on the continent as well as a large control laboratory. Medis has a fast-growing joint venture in Algeria and a promising exports business across Francophone Africa and the Middle East.

Actis is implenting a buy-and-build strategy to create a leading pan-African / Middle-Eastern pharmaceutical business. Medis has ambitious plans to extend into complex ‘biosimilar’ medicines that treat diseases such as infertility and multiple sclerosis and to become one of the few producers of affordable cancer drugs in the region. It also intends to move into the production of asthma inhalers.

The African and Middle-East pharmaceuticals sector has excellent growth prospects, driven by demographic and lifestyle changes. The sector has been dominated by multinationals, but local players offering good quality care at affordable prices have started to emerge, creating greater access to affordable medicines.