Olfa Gam is the general manager of Cytopharma, a pharmaceutical laboratory in Hammam Zriba, Zaghouan that produces affordable anti-cancer drugs. 

Ms. Gam took over the company’s leadership in 2018, following more than two decades of experience in Europe’s pharmaceutical and biotech industry, including with large firms such as Aventis and Catalent. 

As general manager, Ms. Gam has helped Cytopharma develop key international partnerships to fuel its growth and facilitate exports. Today, Cytopharma is the only firm in Africa or the Middle East to exclusively manufacture and market generic anti-cancer drugs. 

To effectively market its anti-cancer medication in Europe and beyond, Cytopharma needed to meet international medical manufacturing standards, which can be costly and time-consuming, and require rare expertise.

JOBS helped the company meet these standards and organize an audit with the German Ministry of Health to certify its compliance. As a result, the company secured the EU Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) certification in May 2022, enabling it confirm orders from German companies to produce 12 batches of anti-cancer drugs in 2022. Not only did this growth create 20 Tunisian pharmaceutical jobs, but it made Cytopharma more attractive to foreign investors as it eyes opportunities to bring its innovative medicine to more markets. 

“JOBS' support has helped us meet a major milestone in our growth strategy and we expect to see further growth -- and additional hiring -- over the next three years.”

Olfa Gam
General Manager – Cytopharma