Merck & Co Inc, (the parent company of MSD (Pty) Ltd. South Africa) has signed an agreement to grant a non-exclusive patent license for the manufacture and sale of a generic version of Efavirenz to Thembalami Pharmaceuticals (Pty) Ltd, a local South African pharmaceutical company, a Merck release said.

This license covers South Africa and other countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and will apply to both the public and private sectors in these countries. Efavirenz is a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor used in combination therapy for the treatment of HIV infection, sold by MSD under the trademark Stocrin.

With the support of MSD's product supply partner, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck is offering Thembalami a royalty-free license to help further the goal of improving access to HIV/AIDS care and treatment for the people of Southern Africa, consistent with Merck's non-profit pricing of Stocrin for South Africa and the SADC region, the release says.

"Given the need for all stakeholders to join and work together to scale-up their response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic, we are granting a license for Efavirenz to support the South African Government in its efforts to expand its treatment programme, and to demonstrate MSD's continued commitment to partner with the South African Government to help bring treatment and care to people living with HIV and AIDS," said Per Wold-Olsen, president, Human Health - Europe, Middle East and Africa, Merck & Co Inc.

"In the poorest countries and those hardest hit by the HIV epidemic, including South Africa, MSD provides Stocrin and Crixivan (indinavir), our protease inhibitor for the treatment of HIV infection, at prices at which we make no profit. MSD South Africa will continue to provide Stocrin in South Africa and throughout the SADC region," said Chirfi Guindo, CEO of MSD South Africa.

In addition, Thembalami has agreed to donate a portion of its proceeds from the sale of Efavirenz to the MSD Msizi (Cares) Trust, a charitable trust established by MSD to further the fight against HIV/AIDS in South Africa through the provision of preventative and education programmes. Sotse Segoneco, the CEO of Thembalami, will become a member of the Board of Trustees of the Trust.

"We're pleased that through this partnership with Thembalami, we will be able to provide an additional source of supply for Efavirenz, in line with the South African Government's goals, and also support capacity building programmes that will help the government in the implementation of the national comprehensive plan to tackle the challenges of HIV and AIDS in this country," Guindo added.

"By granting us a royalty-free license, MSD has once again demonstrated their ongoing commitment to broadening access to antiretroviral medicines in South Africa. I commend MSD for their leadership," said Sotse Segoneco, CEO of Thembalami.