At Cipla Quality Chemical Industries Limited (CiplaQCIL), we are not mere manufacturers of medication. What we make are memories. Memories that may not have been there to be remembered, had a life not been lived. We make people better and we save lives.
About us
Caring for life
That’s why we don’t have a strategy, we have a cause. We don’t have a vision statement, we have vision.
Vision
To become a centre of excellence in the manufacturing of quality, affordable medicines.
Mission
To provide affordable and efficacious medicines in a sustainable way, to improve the quality of life.
Standards
The plant has been designed to meet the world’s most stringent regulatory standards.
Values
- Quality
- Excellence
- Accountability
- Teamwork
- Integrity
- Customer Focus
- Innovation
Who Are We?
Made in Africa, for Africa
CiplaQCIL is committed to making the highest quality, affordable, life-saving medicines because we want people to live a long and healthy life. We see a future where good health is expected – not for the few but for the many. That’s why we believe no-one should be denied access to essential medicine. We’re not just about making medicine, we’re about making a difference.
Growth opportunities
CiplaQCIL continually strives to produce quality, affordable medicines that will meet the demands of the increasing African population. In addition to producing medicine to treat malaria, HIV and Hepatitis B, CiplaQCIL is exploring the production of medicine to manage the surge of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and cancer. In September 2018, following a successful Initial Public Offering, CiplaQCIL shares were listed on the Uganda Securities Exchange for the first time.
Corporate Culture
CiplaQCIL employs more than 350 permanent staff of which 38% is female. We are an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on gender, age, disability, ethnicity, religious grounds, or nationality. We take immense pride in developing and training staff to empower them and enhance their ability to deliver the best results for the business.
Our Leadership
Board of Directors

Mr Katongole is also the Founder of Vero Food Industries – a food and beverage company; an independent Non-Executive Director of Barclays Bank (U) Ltd; Chairman of the Uganda National Oil Company and Chairman of the Advisory Board of London based TLG Capital Ltd. He is a member of the Initiative for Global Development (Frontier 100) – a prestigious group that joins the most successful business leaders operating in frontier markets.
In addition to numerous nominations, Mr Katongole has won several business awards. He was the East African Winner and representative at the 2013 Ernst and Young World Entrepreneur of the Year Awards in Monte Carlo, bagged the 2012 Africa Business Leadership Award and the 2012 Africa Entrepreneurship Award.
He is a Rotarian who has steadily and diligently served as District Governor for Rotary District 9211 which comprises of Tanzania and Uganda and currently serves as Endowment and Major Gifts Advisor for Africa. He is a multiple Major Donor to the Rotary Foundation.
Mr Katongole holds a Master of Arts Degree in Economic Policy and Planning and
an Honours Bachelor of Statistics degree, both from Makerere University.

A heralded global leader with a 15-year track record in strategy development that delivers sector impact and business results, Ajay has a strong foundation in management, pharmaceutical manufacturing operations and cGMP systems with a broad understanding of business finance, P&L and lean concepts. With a ubiquitous need to never stop learning and a penchant for creative problem solving, he plans to ensure that CiplaQCIL meets the needs of its various stakeholders. The immediate priority of the business is to make it profitable, followed by a focus on sustainable and profitable growth, and to improve business agility. “I see a future of growth, where we can make a positive impact in people’s lives, all made possible by a team that are deeply driven and rooted in a culture of excellence, accountability, innovation and integrity.”
Ajay believes that the future for CiplaQCIL is becoming an agile brand which responds to change with great speed, thereby bringing solutions to Africa’s biggest disease burdens. “We will work hard to deliver value for our various stakeholders – staff, shareholders, consumers, healthcare professionals, and partners like governments.”Ajay holds a Master of Business Administration in Management and Leadership from Nelson Mandela University - South Africa and a Bachelor of Pharmacy from the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) - India. He’s also received enterprise leadership training from the Cipla Leadership Ascent Program and a certificate in dIgital tech value creation from INSEAD Singapore.
He’s been on the frontline of implementing operational strategies that drive revenue growth and profitability. Outside of work, his greatest achievements have been completing a cycling event of 109km and a 10km obstacle course. He believes sport is a good way to train determination and resilience.


He was based in China from July 2005, where he held the position of Marketing Director for AstraZeneca in China. He successfully built and launched brands that were market leaders in China in the areas of cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, respiratory and anaesthesia.
Prior to this assignment, he spent four and half years within global oncology marketing based in the UK, first as a Strategy and Portfolio Manager and then as Global Brand Manager. This global experience allowed him to lead and deliver several innovative and novel programmes to support the US, Asian and European market launches.

Mr Daly is a chartered accountant and holds a B. Com Honours degree in accounting from the University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg. He previously held managerial roles in the corporate finance and auditing departments of one the big account firms in South Africa and has also worked abroad in London and Mozambique.

Prof Mugyenyi has been a principal investigator on dozens of landmark research projects, funded by organisations such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH), European Union, World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Medical Research Council (MRC). His research and publications cover a wide spectrum of HIV/AIDS-related diseases and other medical conditions. Specific areas of his research include paediatric and adult HIV treatment, drug trials, HIV resistance, HIV prevention, immunological studies including HIV vaccine trials, pharmacokinetic, molecular and epidemiological studies as well as social and economic impact of HIV.
Internationally, he has served as a board member of several institutions and organizations in Africa, UK, India and the USA. Other roles include membership of various advisory boards including HIV Vaccine Trials Network, USA, Massachusetts General Hospital and Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, USA and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) 90-90-90 initiative to end the HIV epidemic, among others.

Mr Baliddawa has extensive experience in management and leadership roles, specifically in country management, formulating and monitoring the implementation of PWC’s strategic growth plan for Africa, risk, quality and compliance standards management and firm wide financial management and reporting.
Mr Baliddawa is a Ugandan national and is currently President of the Institute of Corporate Governance of Uganda, Chair of the Audit Committees of the Commercial Bank of Africa, Alliance Africa General Insurance Limited and New Vision Group, and a Board member of all three organizations. He is Chair of the Uganda-Norway Friendship Association, a Member of the Council of Uganda Martyrs University and Chair of its Audit Committee.
He has received awards from the World Bank, national and international accountancy organizations and Lions Club International. He undertook his professional education at the London School of Accountancy obtaining membership of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

She is a pillar of Research and Development (R&D) at Cipla and has spearheaded use of cutting-edge technology platforms, equipment, drug-device combinations, and targeted drug delivery dosage forms to fulfil unmet patient needs. She has to her credit, several patents in the areas of formulation development and technology in solid oral dosage forms, topical delivery systems and inhalation medical devices. She has provided technical leadership to multi-disciplinary R&D teams within a cross-functional environment to build and deliver a high throughput R&D with technology being the core focus. She completed her Bachelor’s in Pharmacy in 1985 in Mumbai and received her Executive MBA degree from Washington University, St. Louis in 2017.
She is a recipient of the Eminent Researcher Award by the Indian Pharmaceutical Association in 2007 and FDD Express Pharma Award for Outstanding Achievement in Formulation Development and Drug Delivery in 2017. She has also been honoured with the Indian Glory Award in 2017 by Indian Friendship Society and the Bharat Ratna Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Excellence Award in 2018 for outstanding and distinguished services to the nation.

He holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Edinburgh Business School - Herriot Watt University, a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration from the University of Leicester and, a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Management from the Uganda Management Institute. He has undertaken Executive Management Training at the Strathmore Business School, The Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) and the Gordon Institute of Business (University of Pretoria). He is a Balanced Score Card Professional (George Washington University of Professional Studies). He has also undertaken various short courses in leadership, risk management, financial management, performance management and corporate governance.
Previously, he worked as the Head of Sales and Operations at NSSF and the Head of Commercial Division at Bank of Africa-Uganda Ltd, where he had also previously worked as the Chief Accountant and the Head of Internal Controls. He is a strategic leader responsible for providing direction and managing performance. He is known for being a changemaker with a history of structuring processes and building strong and motivated high-performance teams.
He is currently the Chairperson of the Board Audit Committee at the Entrepreneurs Financial Centre (EFC) and has served on the Board of Kampala Club Limited. He is also a member of the Rotary Club of Kampala North.
Management Team

A heralded global leader with a 15-year track record in strategy development that delivers sector impact and business results, Ajay has a strong foundation in management, pharmaceutical manufacturing operations and cGMP systems with a broad understanding of business finance, P&L and lean concepts. With a ubiquitous need to never stop learning and a penchant for creative problem solving, he plans to ensure that CiplaQCIL meets the needs of its various stakeholders. The immediate priority of the business is to make it profitable, followed by a focus on sustainable and profitable growth, and to improve business agility. “I see a future of growth, where we can make a positive impact in people’s lives, all made possible by a team that are deeply driven and rooted in a culture of excellence, accountability, innovation and integrity.”
Ajay believes that the future for CiplaQCIL is becoming an agile brand which responds to change with great speed, thereby bringing solutions to Africa’s biggest disease burdens. “We will work hard to deliver value for our various stakeholders – staff, shareholders, consumers, healthcare professionals, and partners like governments.”Ajay holds a Master of Business Administration in Management and Leadership from Nelson Mandela University - South Africa and a Bachelor of Pharmacy from the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) - India. He’s also received enterprise leadership training from the Cipla Leadership Ascent Program and a certificate in dIgital tech value creation from INSEAD Singapore.
He’s been on the frontline of implementing operational strategies that drive revenue growth and profitability. Outside of work, his greatest achievements have been completing a cycling event of 109km and a 10km obstacle course. He believes sport is a good way to train determination and resilience.




He holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Heriot-Watt University in the UK and a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and Statistics from Makerere University. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA), Fellow of Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (FCMA) and a Member of the Institutes of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya and Uganda.
Milestones & Awards
Winner
Winner
Winner
Winner
Winner
Winner
Winner
Manufacturing Excellence
WHO-compliant Facilities
CiplaQCIL’s goal is to produce pharmaceutical products of the highest quality that have zero environmental impact, adhere strictly to Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) and Good Laboratory Practices (GLP), and numerous other international regulatory standards.
As the largest pharmaceutical manufacturer in East Africa and also one of the largest in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), CiplaCQIL is one of the few pharmaceutical manufacturers in SSA to operate a World Health Organization (WHO) cGMP compliant facility that manufactures a range of WHO pre-qualified medicines for treating HIV/AIDS and malaria.
ISO Certified
CiplaQCIL has gone the extra mile to get ISO certifications for Environmental Management Systems (ISO 14001:2015). This helps CiplaQCIL to promote better and clear systems on environmental management and (ISO 45001:2018) Occupation Health and Safety Management Systems. We take pride in holding ourselves accountable against international Environmental Health and Safety standards.


Factory Tour
CiplaQCIL has been focused on aggressive market expansion in the past few years, and as a result, the company has been approved by national regulatory bodies across numerous African countries. It is also listed for approvals in many other markets, including South Africa – the single biggest market for antiretrovirals in the world.
The facility is approved for supply in 31 SSA countries and currently exports to 13 countries in Africa and two in South East Asia. CiplaQCIL’s manufacturing facility has also been expanded to increase production capacity from 80 million to 130 million tablets monthly to meet the demand.
CiplaQCIL commissioned a $10 million quality control laboratory – with state-of-the-art equipment such as extractors for drawing dangerous solvents off work benches, detectors that check air pressure and alert in case of leakages, conference rooms and training facilities – which was completed in December 2019. This facility is twice as big as the previous laboratory and accommodates more staff and ensures that the company is compliant with all safety and good laboratory practice requirements. The new facility has also helped to increase productivity and improve production timelines.
CiplaQCIL also constructed a new $5 million warehouse with 3000 sqm space to increase in-house storage capacity and discontinue the use of third-party warehouses. The warehouse has been operational since January 2019 and has the capacity for 5000 pallets.
Our Presence
Global Offices
Cipla Ltd.
Cipla House, Ganpatrao Kadam Marg, Lower Parel,
Mumbai, 400013, India
Cipla South Africa
Parc du Cap Office Park,
Building 9, Mispel Street,
Bellville, 7530, South Africa
Cipla Kenya
Nivina Towers, 4th Floor,
Museum Hill, Westlands Road,
Nairobi, 46986 -00100, Kenya
Cipla EU Ltd.
Bourne Business Park,
Dixcart House Addlestone Road
Addlestone, KT15 2LE, UK
Cipla USA
10 Independence Boulevard,
Suite 300, Warren,
New Jersey, 07059, USA
Cipla Australia Pvt. Ltd
Level 1, 132 Albert Road,
Victoria, 3205, Australia