Afghan Biographies

Rahimi, Hamed


Name Rahimi, Hamed
Ethnic backgr. Pashtun
Date of birth 1964
Function/Grade Hokh Pharma Company Owner
History and Biodata

3. Biodata:
Hamid Rahimi was born 1964 in Kabul. His father was a medical doctor and studies in Hamburg, Germany, in the 70th. Due to war in Afghanistan his father imigrated to Hamburg with his family. Since many yeras the Rahimi family has the German citizenship. Hamed Rahimi returned to Afghanistan to revive the former Hoechst Pharmaceutical factory which he renamed Hokh Pharma Company Hoch Pharma.  After three years of negotiation with the Hoechst successor and actual owner Sanofi-Aventis and the Afghan Administration he finally bought the factory.

Background:
Despite repeated calls for the revival of a Hoechst Pharmaceutical factory, officials say NATO-led soldiers have occupied the building and are not allowing Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) staff to enter the compound in Kabul. The factory that remained operational from 1972 until 1990 would produce 132 types of antibiotics, such as tablets, syrups and capsules, with 49 percent shares belonging to Germany and 51 percent to the Afghan government. Partially destroyed during the civil strife, the company resumed operations after its reconstruction in 1995. And until 2005, it continued to manufacture  eight types of medicine.

During the Taliban regime, the German government sold its shares to an Afghan company owned by Hamid Rahimi, who later renamed the factory as Hokh Pharma. Rahimi, who has a German nationality, was to invest 800,000 euros (52 million afghanis) in the factory, but he did not do so, a health ministry official said. Dr. Mohammad Kazim Naeemi, the pharmacy department head at MoPH, said Rahimi had rented out the building to American soldiers. The contract to the effect was nullified based on a decree from President Hamid Karzai in 2008.

The owner was then referred to the Attorney General Office, but he did not appear before and instead fled to Germany, Naeemi said, adding although the MoPH wanted to restart the company, the building had been occupied by international soldiers. Equipment of the factory was still there, but foreign soldiers were not allowing anyone entry, he said, adding the Ministry of Defence had been informed several times, but no remedial steps had so far been taken.

ISAF spokesman Lt. Col. Jimmie Cummings said the alliance held the building based on a Military Technical Agreement (MTA) in 2002 with the then transitional government.  He said they had asked the Ministry of Defence in September 2011 to hand over the land to ISAF. However, ministry spokesman Gen. Zahir Azimi said he was unaware of the demands made by ISAF and MoPH officials. He also denied the health ministry had asked the defence ministry for a meeting with foreigners on the building’s occupation.

Last Modified 2012-04-26
Established 2012-04-26