IFC is supporting the company with a BRL 330 million loan (equivalent to $65 million) aiming at improving access to quality, affordable healthcare products to the Brazilian population.

IFC’s investment will allow União Química to expand its manufacturing capacity for products including antibiotics, corticoids, anti-inflammatories, and anesthetics, as well as develop vaccine manufacturing capabilities and finance working capital needs. With this project, União Química is expected to increase its medicine manufacturing capacity by 13 percent by 2027.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates the private sector must invest more than $60 billion to expand manufacturing and delivery capacities for healthcare products to meet the demands of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has demonstrated the importance of having a minimum local manufacturing scale for life sciences production to increase health resilience and future pandemic preparedness.

“The possibilities that open up when we join forces with IFC and receive such support go beyond business expansion. These are actions that have an impact on the national healthcare sector and on the regions where we operate, as well as on job creation and the care for the environment, which is a great step towards our evolution”, says Fernando Marques, President of União Química.

IFC will help União Química strengthen its environmental and social practices by supporting the company to adopt best practices in corporate governance for sustainability and by advising them on a solar photovoltaic power generation strategy, identifying opportunities to increase energy efficiency and work towards decarbonization of its operations in Brazil. In addition, IFC will assist the company in developing a vaccine strategy and manufacturing capabilities to serve Brazil and the Latin America region.

“One of IFC’s strategics priorities in Brazil is to increase access to vaccines and medicines to improve health and life quality of the population. IFC’s investment in União Química will not only promote improvements in the competitiveness of the health sector, but also strengthen the resilience of the Brazilian healthcare system” says Carlos Leiria Pinto, IFC Brazil Country Manager.

IFC's investment, part of its Global Health Platform (GHP), reflects the organization’s systematic approach to the pharmaceutical sector in the Latin America and Caribbean region. A central pillar of the broader World Bank Group's response to COVID-19, GHP helps mobilize private investment to close the health care supply gaps and support developing countries to become more resilient to future pandemics or other critical health needs.

IFC has been investing in Brazil’s private sector since 1957 to address the country's most critical development challenges, including those of urbanization, social inclusion, competitiveness and productivity, and management of natural resources.

About IFC

IFC—a member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2022, IFC committed a record $32.8 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.