Novartis was Turkey's top pharmaceutical exporting group over the past 10 years

Novartis leads Turkey's pharmaceutical exports over the past decade

·Since 1955, Novartis Group has been operating in Turkey, exporting USD 1.2 billion to more than 100 countries over the past 10 years from 4 production facilities. ·Novartis Turkey Country Head Dr. Peter Catalino emphasized the Group's commitment to growing together with Turkey in the coming period, making additional investments and maintaining its leadership position in exports while being a pioneer in the sector. Istanbul, 3 April 2017 – Operating in Turkey for more than 60 years, Novartis Group is today among the pioneers of Turkey's pharmaceutical sector with its Innovative Medicines, Oncology, Sandoz and Alcon divisions and 4 production facilities. Dr. Peter Catalino, who has held the position of Novartis Turkey Country Head for the past two years, evaluated the past year and shared his targets for the coming period. "As Novartis Group, we have been in Turkey since 1955. We have 4 production facilities in Turkey: Kurtkoy, Gebze 1, Gebze 2 and Tuzla. With high-value-added medicines produced in these facilities, we contribute to Turkey's high-technology manufacturing. We support the government's pharmaceutical industry vision and are committed to continuing our investments in both production and R&D. We produce our high-value-added molecules for patients both in Turkey and in more than 100 countries. Last year, our total exports reached USD 150 million. Over the past 10 years, we have exported USD 1.2 billion to more than 100 countries; this makes us Turkey's leading pharmaceutical export group. Thanks to the capacity and technical infrastructure of our Kurtkoy production facility, we can produce many products locally. In 2016, we made an additional USD 15 million investment to produce 2 high-value-added products. Over the past 10 years, we have invested over USD 240 million in our production facilities. Our Gebze 1 facility is Turkey's pharmaceutical export champion. Since 2010, it has been listed every year in the Pharmaceutical Exporters List and has been ranked first many times. From this facility, where 45 molecules in solid, liquid and semi-solid forms are produced, exports are made to more than 50 countries in Europe, Latin America, Canada and Asia Pacific. As Novartis Group, we are one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in the R&D field in Turkey with more than 100 ongoing clinical studies. In 2016, we invested USD 39.4 million in clinical research. Over the past 7 years, we have allocated over USD 144 million to clinical studies in Turkey, thereby supporting Turkish physicians in global competition in the R&D field. Today, as Novartis Group, we have nearly 2,300 qualified employees in Turkey. We invest in our employees and work towards creating the best work environment for them. Our efforts are receiving recognition from the outside world. The awards we received last year are the most important proof of this. According to the results of the "Turkey's Best Workplaces 2016" research conducted by Aon, we received the "Best Workplace" award. We have received this award 4 times in total, consecutively for the past two years. We also have two awards from Great Place to Work. While entering the "Turkey's Best Employers 2016" list, we also became the recipient of the special "Sustainability in Women Employment" award, which was given for the first time. These awards provide additional motivation for our employees and make our company an attraction center for young talent. Within the framework of the government's goal to make Turkey a center for high-value-added pharmaceutical production and exports, our long-term goal is to grow together with Turkey and to continue our pioneering position in the sector through more investment, more production and more R&D activities. Our goal for the future is to grow with Turkey while increasing our investment and maintaining our leadership in exports."

About Novartis

Novartis, one of the world's leading organizations in the healthcare field, is also one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in Turkey. With its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis works to best meet patients' needs with its broad product portfolio consisting of innovative medicines, generic and biosimilar medicines and eye health products. In 2016, the Group's continuing operations reached net sales of USD 48.5 billion, of which approximately USD 9 billion was allocated to R&D activities across the Group. Operating in more than 155 countries worldwide, Novartis employs approximately 118,000 people in all group companies. In Turkey, Novartis Group, which has been operating since 1955 with approximately 2,300 employees, is among the sector pioneers with its Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Novartis Oncology, Sandoz and Alcon divisions and 4 production facilities, one of which is for raw materials. Over the past 10 years, Novartis Group has achieved total exports of USD 1.2 billion from these facilities, making it Turkey's leading pharmaceutical export group. For more information: