Medical devices Vision 2030: the target to make 30% of Pakistan’s devices at home
A May 2026 summit set a goal of local manufacture of at least 30% of medical devices by 2030, with a proposed Rs1 billion R&D fund.
In this article
Pakistan spends billions of rupees a year importing medical devices that could be made at home. A summit in Karachi in May 2026 set out to change that.
The target
The Pakistan Medical Devices Manufacturing Summit, organised by the Saman-e-Shifa Foundation with Salim Habib University and DRAP, launched Vision 2030: local manufacture of at least 30% of the medical devices Pakistan needs by 2030, The News reported.
What was agreed
- A proposed Rs1 billion R&D fund for indigenous device manufacturing.
- A new Centre of Medical Device Innovation and Research and a device manufacturing platform.
- MoUs with the Institute of Pakistan Medical Device Industry (IPMDI).
- Locally made ICU ventilators, patient monitors and syringe pumps were donated to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases.
“Self-reliance in health care is no longer a choice, it is a necessity for national survival and health security.” — Prof Dr Syed Shahid Noor, Chairman, Saman-e-Shifa
He recalled how import dependence led to shortages of ventilators and syringes during Covid-19. The panel included the Healthcare Devices Association of Pakistan (HDAP), PharmEvo and local device makers.
Investment momentum
Medical devices were also one of three priority areas in the Pakistan–China investment pacts of July 2026.
How devices are regulated in Pakistan
Medical devices are regulated by DRAP under the Medical Devices Rules, 2017. As in most countries, devices are grouped by risk: low-risk items such as many simple disposables face lighter requirements, while higher-risk devices — those that support life, are implanted or deliver medicines — face stricter assessment. Manufacturers need an establishment licence and registration of their products, and a quality management system is central to both. Internationally, that system is usually built on the ISO 13485 standard for medical device quality management.
Why local manufacturing is hard — and possible
Devices cover an enormous range, from cotton and syringes to ventilators and imaging equipment. The challenges differ along that range:
| Type | Main challenge |
|---|---|
| High-volume disposables | Competing on cost with large foreign producers; sterilisation capacity |
| Electronic equipment | Design skills, component supply, software and testing |
| Implants and high-risk devices | Clinical evidence, biocompatibility and strict quality systems |
The locally built ventilators, patient monitors and syringe pumps shown at the summit suggest that the middle category is already within reach for Pakistani engineers, especially when universities and hospitals work with manufacturers on design and testing.
What would help
- Testing and certification — accessible laboratories for electrical safety, performance and biocompatibility, so local makers do not have to send products abroad.
- Public procurement — hospital tenders that give quality local products a fair chance to build a track record.
- Funding for development — the proposed Rs1 billion R&D fund points in this direction.
- Skills — biomedical engineers and quality specialists trained for regulated manufacturing.
The Covid-19 shortages that Prof Noor recalled showed what is at stake: when global supply is stretched, countries that can make their own critical devices are better protected.
A link with pharmaceuticals
Devices and medicines increasingly meet in the same product: prefilled syringes, inhalers, insulin pens and infusion sets. Pharmaceutical manufacturers moving into injectables and specialised dosage forms will need reliable device components, and local device makers will need the quality systems that pharma companies already run. That overlap is one reason HDAP supports Pharma Asia, where both industries walk the same halls.
Where the openings are
| Area | Opportunity |
|---|---|
| Disposables | High-volume products such as syringes |
| Equipment | Monitors, pumps and ventilators already built locally |
| Components and testing | Electronics, moulding, sterilisation and test labs |
HDAP is a supporter of Pharma Asia 2026, where device makers meet manufacturers and buyers — see what to expect.
