Evolving developments in law and regulation applied to the pharmaceutical industry, public opinion on standards of ethical behavior and the global economic situation make this a challenging time to be a compliance professional or legal counsel responsible for ensuring adherence to applicable laws, regulations and codes of practice within our industry. Worldwide, industry leaders emphasize the importance of ethical behavior, reputation and compliance activities in forming a cornerstone for building trust by government and the public in the global pharmaceutical enterprise. The Pharmaceutical Compliance Forum International Pharma Congress brings together senior global compliance and ethics professionals and legal counsel from the European Union (EU), Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and Middle East and Africa (MEA) to share experiences and best practices to clarify these challenges and discuss potential responses to them.

Across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, regulators are increasingly active at both national and regional levels. In the USA, aggressive FCPA enforcement and the new Federal Sunshine Act are beginning to have a significant impact across the pharmaceutical industry in EU, CEE and MEA. Emerging markets and notably Russia, CIS and Turkey are attracting more direct investment to address growing unmet medical needs. The growing importance of new regulations like the UK Bribery Act or the Anti-Corruption bills in Russia, in conjunction with increasing FCPA enforcement, indicate that authorities are now going to deeply influence business practices in these regions. Local trade associations in those markets are starting to close the gap with their peers from more advanced markets in addressing ethics and compliance issues.

The Congress is keynoted by David Brennan, Chief Executive Officer, AstraZeneca and President, International Federation of Pharmaceutical, Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA). Other keynote speakers include representatives of EFPIA, ETHIC Intelligence International, FARMAINDUSTRIA, the Institute of Business Ethics, the UK Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority and the OECD. Panel discussions will focus on disclosure and transparency; trust, reputation and the public perception of the global pharmaceutical enterprise; and the EFPIA Leadership Statement: one year's experience. There also will be track discussions on European Union compliance update; Central and Eastern Europe compliance update; Middle East and Africa compliance update; global compliance audits and monitoring; FCPA and global anticorruption; global transparency, disclosure and aggregate spend; and global compliance case studies. Pharmaceutical compliance leaders will share their views in a closing session on envisioning pharma compliance in 2015: a compliance crystal ball session.

If you want to find out how to manage compliance in these challenging times, the PCF International Pharma Congress will give you the information that you need.