The Republic of Indonesia is situated in the Indonesian archipelago. Indonesia comprises 33 provinces, five main islands (Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and Irian Jaya) and 17,500 other smaller islands (about 5,000 of which are inhabited). The total area is about 1,948,732 square kilometres. Over 40% of the land area is mountainous and much of the country is forested. Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, is on the island of Java. The GDP grew by 5.13% in 2004, slightly higher than the government’s target growth of 4.8%.
The total pharmaceutical market which exceeded Rp20.9 trillion, grew by 19.6% in 2004, much faster than its growth (13.5%) in 2003. In the three panel sectors (Pharmacy, Drugstores & Hospital), growth was 9.9%, much lower than 29% in the Non-Panel sectors (Clinic, Institutions, Dispensing Doctors, Supermarkets, Stores, and cigarette peddlers). The high growth was mostly driven by domestic manufacturers.
In Indonesia, medicines are classified into four categories: Narcotics (O), Prescription Medicine (G), OTC Medicine with Warning Labels (W), and OTC Medicines (F). By legislation, narcotics and prescription medicines can only be sold through pharmacies on prescription. Drugstores can deal in OTC medicines with warning labels and general OTC medicines. General OTC medicines can also be sold through outlets such as supermarkets and general stores.
Besides the drugstore, there exists a large number of peddlers throughout the country with greater concentration in the cities. These peddlers, although small in size, account for a substantial amount of turnover of pharmaceuticals due to their sheer number.
