Pakistan’s federal cabinet has approved the nationwide implementation of a Track and Trace System for pharmaceutical products, a digital monitoring framework that will require all medicine manufacturers and importers to place standardised two-dimensional barcodes and serialisation data on every medicine package sold in the country. Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal announced the decision, describing it as a major and historic step toward eliminating counterfeit, fake, and substandard medicines from Pakistan, with the cabinet simultaneously approving amendments to the Drug Labelling and Packing Rules, 1978, to provide the legal foundation for the new digital mechanism.
Under the new regulations, pharmaceutical manufacturers and importers will be required to print two-dimensional barcodes and serialisation data on medicine packaging, enabling regulators, distributors, pharmacies, and consumers to trace products throughout the entire supply chain from manufacturing to the point of sale. Once the system is implemented, consumers will be able to independently verify a medicine’s expiry date, usage instructions, and price through the barcode printed on each package, using their mobile devices to access authenticated information without requiring any specialised equipment. The shift from conventional monitoring methods to a barcode-driven digital framework represents a fundamental change in how Pakistan’s pharmaceutical supply chain will be overseen, replacing a system that has historically been vulnerable to the introduction of counterfeit and substandard products at multiple points along the distribution chain.
DRAP will oversee the implementation of the system and issue technical guidelines to facilitate compliance by pharmaceutical companies. Minister Kamal said the initiative would strengthen the security and transparency of Pakistan’s pharmaceutical supply chain while aligning it with international standards, adding that the adoption of advanced digital technologies would modernise the country’s drug monitoring system and improve consumer confidence. The minister noted that consultations with industry stakeholders had already been conducted to ensure the smooth implementation of the track and trace system, which is expected to create a strong barrier against counterfeit medicines and enhance public health protection nationwide.
Minister Kamal emphasised that the new technology will position Pakistan as a leading country in the region in adopting advanced regulatory technologies for healthcare, with the system safeguarding human lives by ensuring that every medicine reaching the consumer is authentic, properly labelled, and within its validity period. The approval of the Track and Trace System arrives at a time when Pakistan’s healthcare sector is under sustained pressure to improve the quality and safety of medicines available to the public, with counterfeit and substandard drugs representing a persistent risk to patient safety across both urban and rural markets. DRAP is expected to issue detailed technical guidelines to the pharmaceutical industry in the coming weeks, setting out the specific requirements for barcode format, serialisation standards, and compliance timelines ahead of the system’s full nationwide rollout.
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