PILLS PAY BIG! Quality Chemicals Reaps Shs56.4bn Harvest!

Quality Chemical Industries Limited (QCIL) has posted its strongest financial performance since inception, reporting a third consecutive year of profit growth as investments in manufacturing capacity and product diversification continued to pay off.

For the financial year ended March 2026, the pharmaceutical manufacturer recorded an 8.8 percent increase in revenue to more than 290 billion shillings, while profit after tax surged by 38.8 percent to a record 56.4 billion shillings.

Speaking at the company’s Annual General Meeting, Board Chairman Emmanuel Katongole described the results as the best in QCIL’s history, attributing the performance to continued investment in manufacturing, an expanding product portfolio and growing regional demand.

The shareholders approved a final dividend of 6.4 shillings per share, bringing the total dividend for the year to 16.6 shillings per share.

Katongole said the year was also marked by major milestones, including the commencement of construction of the company’s second manufacturing plant and the launch of new products, notably medicines for the treatment of sickle cell disease.

Originally known for manufacturing antiretroviral medicines and antimalarial drugs, QCIL has steadily expanded into treatments for non-communicable and infectious diseases, strengthening its position as one of sub-Saharan Africa’s leading pharmaceutical manufacturers.

The company recently completed Africa’s only Hydroxyurea manufacturing facility for sickle cell treatment and introduced 15 new products targeting conditions including diabetes, hypertension, allergies, fungal infections and bacterial diseases.

Its new manufacturing plant under construction in Luzira is expected to double production capacity and introduce injectable medicines. The facility, financed through internally generated funds and bank borrowing, is expected to be completed within 24 months.

Chief Executive Officer Ajay Kumar Pal said the strong financial results were achieved despite a difficult global business environment characterised by geopolitical tensions, trade disputes, supply chain disruptions and constrained access to international financing. However, the board cautioned shareholders that part of this year’s earnings was boosted by one-off income, including the recovery of outstanding payments from the Government of Zambia.

It said the current level of dividend should not be viewed as a benchmark for future distributions.

Looking ahead, the company expects profitability to face pressure from increasing competition, changing procurement trends, volatile input prices and global supply chain challenges, particularly for active pharmaceutical ingredients.

Pal also dismissed claims that medicines labelled “Made in India” indicate the company imports products for resale. He said those medicines are manufactured under arrangements designed to establish market demand before production is fully localised in Uganda.

He said QCIL intends to make sickle cell medicines one of its flagship product lines after identifying a significant unmet need driven by high childhood mortality, limited access to treatment and the high cost of available medicines.

The company’s improved performance has boosted investor confidence, with its share price almost doubling to Shs136.In November 2023, Africa Capitalworks acquired Cipla’s 51.18 percent stake in the company, and in February 2024 the business was renamed from Cipla Quality Chemical Industries Limited to Quality Chemical Industries Limited.

QCIL currently has an annual production capacity of about 1.2 billion tablets, exports medicines to at least 13 African countries and holds regulatory approvals in 31 markets across the continent.

Katongole also dismissed suggestions that Cipla exited because of poor business performance, saying the sale was in line with the terms of the original investment agreement.