Data. Public procurement of medicines dominated by a few players
The markets related to KCl have been the focus of public debate in recent days. But beyond this single medication, what is the broader dynamic of public drug procurement in the healthcare sector?
Médias24 has dissected public tenders launched since the start of the year by the supervisory ministry, university hospitals and specialized healthcare centers.
Our analysis focused on the tender minutes awarded between early January 2025 and November 24, 2025.
We aimed for comprehensive coverage, consulting 50 tender minutes published on the official public markets portal during this period for drug purchases by hospitals or the Health Ministry. At least a dozen were declared unsuccessful.
For example, we did not take into account tenders launched by the prison administration or local authorities.
A purchase volume of around 1.35 billion MAD since early January 2025
The analysis of awarded markets shows a purchase volume of approximately 1.35 billion Moroccan dirhams (MAD) between January 2025 and November 24. This amount could change once other markets, still ongoing, are awarded.
In this first article, we look at the main trends and the structure of the market related to these purchases. A second article will focus on the drugs covered by these markets.
Ten companies capture over 60% of the amounts
44 companies have won public drug tenders. Data compiled by Médias24 show a concentration of purchases:
The top three suppliers — Roche, Pharma 5 and Sothema — account for 30% of the awarded amounts. The top 10 represent 64%.
This structuring confirms once again that a few leading laboratories hold the bulk of the portfolio tailored to the needs of hospitals.
The first place goes to Roche with over 150 million MAD since the beginning of the year to date, representing a market share of 11%.
In second place, Pharma 5 reaches over 132 million MAD in the same period (10%).
And the third-ranking player is Sothema with a total amount of around 119.7 million MAD (9%), closely followed by Hemolab Pharma (89 million MAD) with an estimated market share of 7%. Maphar, with around 80.2 million MAD (6%), rounds out the top 5.
Other significant companies appear in the ranking, including Pfizer (63 million MAD).
The graph below, which compiles the results of all the minutes that we consulted, shows a market dominated by leading international and national players, but also by medium‑sized companies, such as Polymedic, with a turnover of 52.4 million MAD (4%), or Promopharm (40.3 million MAD), a representation of Hikma company, with a market share of 3%.

12 unsuccessful markets and several markets still ongoing
At the bottom of the ranking, several companies obtained only very modest markets, such as Axess Pharma (987,400 MAD), Pharmedic (408,000 MAD), or Novopharm (163,000 MAD).
The analysis also shows that at least 12 of the 50 studied tenders remained unsuccessful. The minutes consulted did not explain the reasons for non-attribution.
Other tenders, launched by the Ministry of Health as well as several university hospitals and specialized healthcare centers, are still ongoing.
Local industry captures about 52% of the market
Another major finding is the relative dominance of Moroccan industrialists. In total, about thirty laboratories represent approximately 52% of the amounts awarded since the beginning of the current year.
These include Sothema, Laprophan, Cooper Pharma, Afric Phar, Zenith Pharma, Hemolab Pharma, Soludia Maghreb… Many of them are strongly positioned in injectable solutions and infusions.
Multinationals remain present, but in a more targeted manner, mainly on specialty products related to diabetes, oncology, or chronic diseases.
These include Roche, Sanofi, Maphar, Pfizer, Bayer, Novartis, etc. They represent about 42% of the total amounts awarded during the same period.
In an upcoming article, we will delve more deeply into the drugs involved in these tenders.






