Maldives to Launch Digital Medicine Tracking System for Public by October

The State Pharmaceutical Company Limited is set to launch a nationwide digital system to monitor medicine stocks across all government pharmacies by October, aiming to end chronic shortages and management gaps in the healthcare sector. The announcement came during a meeting of the Parliament’s State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) Committee, where authorities addressed the systemic challenges hindering the sustainable supply of essential medications across the Maldives. Currently, the Maldives lacks a centralized inventory system. While the State Trading Organisation (STO) monitors its own pharmacy stocks, this data is not accessible to the doctors prescribing the medication. Furthermore, Aasandha Company Limited, the national health insurance provider, confirmed there is no real-time mechanism to view available stocks at pharmacies operating under the insurance scheme. Dr. Shah Mahir, Managing Director of the State Pharmaceutical Company, informed the committee that a comprehensive digital tracking system will be developed once all STO pharmacies are transferred to the State Pharmaceutical Company by July. This transition is the prerequisite for building a unified database. "I am very confident that this work will ensure stock visibility," Dr. Shah stated. He revealed that the system will include a public-facing portal, allowing patients to verify which pharmacies have their required medications in stock before traveling to a facility. Beyond digital tracking, Dr. Shah emphasized a new commitment to patient care. He assured the committee that if a necessary medication is unavailable at a local pharmacy, the company will proactively source it from other islands, different pharmacies, or import it from abroad to ensure no patient is left without treatment. The project is expected to be fully operational by October, representing a significant shift toward transparency and efficiency in how the Maldives manages its pharmaceutical supply chain.