On July 28, 2026, Proxima Research Kazakhstan hosted the online webinar “Pharmaceutical Analytics 360°: Six Keys to Understanding the Pharmaceutical Market. H1 2026 Results.”
The webinar focused on key developments in Kazakhstan’s retail pharmaceutical market, including sales and consumption trends, pharmaceutical companies’ promotional activity, prescribing patterns, and emerging growth opportunities.
The event brought together pharmaceutical industry executives, marketing and sales professionals, analysts, and field force representatives.
Assel Temirbolatova, Product Owner Audit KZ at Proxima Research Kazakhstan, presented an overview of Kazakhstan’s retail pharmaceutical market for the first half of 2026, based on data from Market Audit KZ.
The market reached KZT 409 billion, representing a 1.2% increase compared with the same period last year. In US dollar terms, the market grew by 6.5% to USD 841 million.
At the same time, unit consumption declined by 16.2% to 213 million packs. This indicates that market growth in monetary terms was primarily driven by an increase in the average price per pack rather than higher sales volumes.
The weighted average price per pack reached approximately KZT 1,950 for medicines and KZT 1,740 for dietary supplements.
In value terms, prescription medicines accounted for 59% of the market, while OTC medicines represented 41%. In volume terms, the distribution was reversed: OTC products accounted for 53% of packs sold, compared with 47% for prescription medicines.
The presentation also examined the market by product origin. Imported medicines represented 84% of sales in value terms, while locally manufactured products accounted for 16%. However, domestic products represented approximately one-third of unit sales, reflecting their greater affordability.
Particular attention was also given to the development of pharmacy retail. Pharmacy chains generated 77% of market turnover, while the five largest chains accounted for approximately 34% of the market. These figures confirm the continued consolidation of Kazakhstan’s pharmacy retail sector.
Ivan Lesko, Product Manager PromoRxTest at Proxima Research International, discussed recent changes in pharmaceutical promotion and physician prescribing.
In the first half of 2026, the number of recalled promotional contacts increased by 8%, while the number of prescriptions grew by 4%.
Face-to-face communication with medical representatives remains the primary engagement channel for healthcare professionals, particularly in the prescription segment. At the same time, remote communication, online advertising, and other digital channels continue to gain importance.
PromoTest and RxTest data make it possible to assess not only the level of promotional activity but also its effectiveness. Companies can identify which communication channels influence prescribing, which physician specialties are already highly saturated with promotional activity, and where untapped growth potential remains.
General practitioners, gynaecologists, and paediatricians continued to generate the highest number of prescriptions. However, the strongest growth was recorded among ENT specialists, surgeons, and dermatologists, pointing to potential opportunities for refining marketing strategies.
The webinar concluded with an open Q&A session.
Participants discussed the decline in unit sales, the outlook for a recovery in consumption, growth in the dietary supplement segment, the regional development of pharmacy chains, the differences between PromoTest and RxTest, and plans to launch daily sales and e-commerce analytics.
Kazakhstan’s pharmaceutical market continues to grow in value terms. However, declining unit sales and rising average prices require companies to look beyond headline figures and understand the factors driving market change.
In the current environment, companies need to identify:
which categories and brands are driving growth;
how consumer behaviour is changing;
which promotional channels influence prescribing;
where competitor activity is most intensive;
which segments still offer additional growth potential.
By combining Market Audit KZ, PromoTest, and RxTest data, companies can connect sales performance, promotional activity, and prescribing behaviour into a single market view and make decisions based on timely, reliable insights.
Follow Proxima Research Kazakhstan for updates on upcoming webinars and new pharmaceutical market insights.
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