Mary Nnah
Shareholders of Fidson Healthcare Plc, the leading indigenous pharmaceutical manufacturing company in Nigeria, will receive a dividend of 50 kobo per share.
This was unanimously approved by the company’s shareholders at the 23rd Annual General Meeting, which was held recently at the company’s head office in Lagos Nigeria. This dividend is a 100 per cent improvement on the 25 kobo per share declared in the 2020 financial year.
It was also reported that the company in the year ended 31st December 2021 recorded a turnover of N30.860 billion, compared with N18.275 billion in 2020, representing an increase of 69 per cent. Operating profit grew from N3.097 billion in 2020 to N5.862 billion in 2021, representing an increase of 89 per cent. Also, profit after tax increased from N1.205 billion in 2020 to N3.097 billion during the year under review, representing an increase of 157 per cent.
Given the outstanding performance recorded in the year under review, the Board in addition to the dividend was pleased to propose a bonus of 1 new ordinary share for every 10 ordinary shares of 50 kobo held by shareholders as of the record date. The shareholders unanimously approved this.
In his statement, the Chairman, Board of Directors of the company Mr. Segun Adebanji, FCA, said Fidson continued to champion innovation and capacity expansion to address customers’ need for affordable and high-quality drugs despite the unfriendly socio-economic realities in Nigeria. Though he acknowledged the effect of the economic challenges such as the foreign exchange situation, rising operating costs, poor government funding of the health sector, and the incessant closure of markets, especially in the South-eastern part of Nigeria which disrupted the supply chain and regular supplies of our products around the country; he stressed the resolve of the company’s leadership not to drop the ball.
“The Board and Management of our company remain determined to sustain our industry position as the pharma company of choice, not only in Nigeria but also in the entire African continent. We will continue to champion innovation and capacity expansion to meet the strategic goals and priorities of our company to address our customers’ need for affordable and high-quality drugs,” Adebanji said.
The highlight of the event was the interactive session where Shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the performance of the company. They thanked the management of Fidson Healthcare PLC., under the leadership of the Managing Director, Dr. Fidelis Ayebae for their proactive leadership even in the daunting economic conditions.
Despite the macro-economic conditions and the operating environment, Fidson Healthcare Plc, driven by its investments in local manufacturing, will continuously pursue its vision to be the healthcare provider of choice in Africa. A young, vibrant, and well-motivated management team is already boosting investors’ confidence that the future of the company remains bright.
The company is committed to meeting the demand for pharmaceutical products across Nigeria with a deliberate increase in production capacity to deliver dosage forms in key therapeutic areas. Today, the company boasts of over 250 NAFDAC registered brands and is deliberately expanding production capacity at its current World Health Organisation Good Manufacturing Practice (WHO-CGMP) compliant facility in Sango Ota, Nigeria – the largest pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Sub-Saharan Africa.
