Lilly And EVA Pharma Launch Locally Produced Insulin In Egypt Following Regulatory Approval

The Egyptian Drug Authority has approved EVA Pharma’s insulin glargine injection, developed in partnership with Eli Lilly and Company. This collaboration, launched in 2022, focuses on ensuring a steady supply of affordable, high-quality human and analog insulin for over one million people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes annually in low- and middle-income countries, especially in Africa.

This approval is a significant milestone for EVA Pharma, marking the first regulatory clearance for its insulin products since the partnership with Lilly was announced in December 2022. As part of this agreement, Lilly has been supplying the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) for insulin at a reduced cost and providing free technology transfer support. This support enables EVA Pharma to manufacture insulin vials and cartridges locally, increasing access to diabetes treatment in underserved regions.

In under two years since announcing their partnership, EVA Pharma has completed a state-of-the-art biologics manufacturing facility, finalized insulin formulations, conducted stability testing, obtained regulatory approval for insulin glargine injection, and released the first batch of locally manufactured insulin.

EVA Pharma has also submitted its human insulin injection for local regulatory approval. Together with Eli Lilly, the company is collaborating with the World Health Organization (WHO) to achieve WHO pre-qualification for the human insulin injection. This certification will confirm that EVA Pharma’s medicines meet WHO’s stringent quality standards.

Ilya Yuffa, executive vice president and president of Lilly International, stated, “For more than a century, Lilly has been at the forefront of diabetes care, offering innovative solutions that make life better for people around the world. Our collaboration with EVA Pharma furthers our commitment to providing sustainable and accessible medicines worldwide. We will continue to work with global health systems and industry stakeholders to address systemic barriers to healthcare and expand equitable, affordable access to our medicines to transform more people's lives."

Riad Armanious, Chief Executive Officer of EVA Pharma, said in a statement, "Localizing essential medicines is the key to driving equitable access to healthcare. It takes bold collaboration, cutting-edge innovation, and tech-driven manufacturing to turn this vision into reality. Our collaboration with Lilly shows what's possible when we push boundaries together. This is just the beginning—we're on track to impact over a million lives annually across 56 countries, making a real difference for people living with diabetes.”

This partnership aligns with Lilly’s 30x30 initiative, which seeks to provide quality healthcare to 30 million people in underserved regions each year by 2030. Recently, Lilly and EVA Pharma expanded their collaboration. Lilly will now share baricitinib manufacturing expertise with EVA Pharma, enabling the local production and distribution of treatments for immunological diseases across 56 low- and middle-income countries in Africa.