SAHPRA-approved GLP-1 medicines in South Africa: the 2026 list

What GLP-1 medicines are

GLP-1 receptor agonists copy the action of glucagon-like peptide-1, a hormone the gut releases after eating. They were first developed for type 2 diabetes and some are now also used for weight management. Tirzepatide goes a step further and also acts on a second hormone receptor, GIP. All of them are prescription medicines in South Africa.

Five active ingredients in this class are registered here. Most are weekly or daily injections. The one tablet is Rybelsus, a form of semaglutide taken by mouth.

The registered list

We searched the SAHPRA registered health products database on 30 September 2026 for every GLP-1 and GIP/GLP-1 active ingredient and brand we know of. These products have an active registration:

Medicine	Active ingredient	Holder	Registered
Victoza	liraglutide	Novo Nordisk	25 Nov 2011
Soliqua	insulin glargine + lixisenatide	Sanofi	12 Jan 2020
Saxenda	liraglutide	Novo Nordisk	31 Mar 2020
Trulicity	dulaglutide	Eli Lilly	31 Mar 2020
Ozempic	semaglutide (injection)	Novo Nordisk	7 Jul 2020
Mounjaro	tirzepatide	Eli Lilly	9 Apr 2024
Persovance	tirzepatide	Eli Lilly	9 Apr 2024
Rybelsus	semaglutide (tablet)	Novo Nordisk	3 Sep 2024
Giliptra	liraglutide	Cipla Medpro	21 Jan 2025
Liraglutide Cipla	liraglutide	Cipla Medpro	21 Jan 2025
Wegovy	semaglutide (injection)	Novo Nordisk	11 Feb 2025
Mounjaro KwikPen	tirzepatide	Eli Lilly	15 Jul 2025
Semagard	semaglutide (injection)	Ranbaxy (Sun Pharma)	30 Jun 2026

Registration covers specific uses. Some of these medicines are registered for type 2 diabetes, others for weight management, and the difference matters: only a doctor can say which, if any, is appropriate for you.

By active ingredient

• Semaglutide: Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus from Novo Nordisk, and Semagard from Ranbaxy, part of Sun Pharma. Extensior (below) is also semaglutide.
• Tirzepatide: Mounjaro, Mounjaro KwikPen and Persovance, all from Eli Lilly.
• Liraglutide: Victoza and Saxenda from Novo Nordisk, and Giliptra and Liraglutide Cipla from Cipla Medpro.
• Dulaglutide: Trulicity from Eli Lilly.
• Lixisenatide: only in combination with insulin glargine, as Soliqua from Sanofi.

Extensior

Extensior is a semaglutide injection from Novo Nordisk, launched with its partner Acino in July 2026 as an authorised copy of Ozempic. It does not appear in the public SAHPRA register yet, but it is listed with a registration number (61/21.13/0858) in the Department of Health's medicine price database, and Reuters reported its SAHPRA approval on 17 July 2026. The public register may simply be behind.

No longer registered

Several older products appear in the register as cancelled: Byetta and Bydureon BCise (exenatide), Xultophy (insulin degludec with liraglutide) and Vivsuna (insulin glargine with lixisenatide).

What is not registered

The register returned no entries for:

• Retatrutide, the experimental triple agonist from Eli Lilly. It is still in clinical trials; see is retatrutide legal in South Africa?
• Orforglipron, an oral GLP-1 medicine from Lilly. There are no entries under the brand name Foundayo either.
• The Wegovy tablet. The only semaglutide tablet registered here is Rybelsus.
• Zepbound, the US brand of tirzepatide for weight management. In South Africa tirzepatide is registered as Mounjaro and Persovance.
• Cagrilintide, alone or combined with semaglutide.

Products sold online under these names, or as powders "for research use", are not registered medicines.

Generic semaglutide arrives

Novo Nordisk's South African patent on semaglutide expired in March 2026, according to Reuters. Two lower-priced semaglutide injections followed within months: Semagard from Sun Pharma, registered on 30 June 2026 and launched for type 2 diabetes in July, and Novo Nordisk's own Extensior. According to Reuters and the Mail & Guardian, SAHPRA was reviewing a further 12 to 13 applications for generic semaglutide in mid-2026, alongside applications for generic liraglutide.

Authorised copies and generics

A generic is a medicine with the same active ingredient as the original, made by another company and registered after its own review. Semagard is one. An authorised copy is the original manufacturer's own medicine sold under a different name, usually at a lower price. Extensior is Novo Nordisk's authorised copy of Ozempic, according to Reuters. Both are registered medicines, unlike compounded or "research" products.

What they cost

These are single exit prices from the Department of Health's medicine price database dated 10 September 2026. They include VAT but not the pharmacy dispensing fee, so what you pay at the counter will be higher. Prices can change each year.

Medicine	Pack	Single exit price
Ozempic	pen, 1.5 ml or 3 ml	R1,437.78 – R2,875.56
Extensior	pen, 1.5 ml or 3 ml	R1,222.11 – R2,444.23
Semagard	pen, 1.5 ml or 3 ml	R1,161.01 – R2,322.01
Wegovy	pen, by strength	R1,148.76 – R3,745.64
Mounjaro KwikPen	pen, by strength	R3,605.59 – R8,167.60

On these figures, Extensior costs about 15% less than Ozempic for the same pack size, and Semagard about 19% less. Wegovy and Mounjaro KwikPen prices vary with the strength of the pen.

Rybelsus, Persovance and Liraglutide Cipla do not appear in the price database, which may mean they are registered but not currently marketed. We have not been able to confirm this.

SAHPRA's warnings on unregistered GLP-1 products

• November 2024: SAHPRA warned about compounded, substandard and falsified GLP-1 products and named several, including products sold as retatrutide.
• March 2025: SAHPRA announced its intention to declare compounded GLP-1 medicines undesirable under Section 23 of the Medicines Act. We have not found a final decision.
• May 2026: SAHPRA and the South African Pharmacy Council acted against a Pretoria compounding pharmacy and ordered a recall of its semaglutide and tirzepatide products.
• July 2026: health regulators warned against using or dispensing the recalled products.

Why compounded GLP-1 products are a problem

Compounding is when a pharmacy prepares a medicine for an individual patient. SAHPRA has said that compounding a medicine from an ingredient that is not in any registered product is illegal, and in 2026 it and the Pharmacy Council said that compounding cannot be used as a way to manufacture, advertise or distribute unregistered medicines at scale. The May 2026 recall followed reports of adverse events, including hospital admissions, linked to such products.

Common questions

Is Ozempic registered for weight loss?

Ozempic is registered, but when SAHPRA issued its November 2024 statement it noted that neither Ozempic nor Mounjaro was registered in South Africa for weight management at the time. Wegovy, Novo Nordisk's semaglutide brand for weight management, was registered in February 2025. The package insert of each medicine sets out what it is registered for.

Is the Wegovy tablet available in South Africa?

Not as a registered medicine. On 30 September 2026 the register listed only Wegovy injections.

Are GLP-1 medicines sold without a prescription legal?

Registered GLP-1 medicines are prescription medicines and should be dispensed by a pharmacy against a prescription. Products sold without one, especially unregistered, compounded or "research" products, fall outside that system.

How to check a medicine yourself

Every registered medicine carries a SAHPRA registration number on its pack, in a format like 53/21.13/0497. You can search the product name or active ingredient in the SAHPRA database linked above. If a GLP-1 product has no registration number, or the number doesn't match the register, it is not a registered medicine. Please talk to a doctor or pharmacist before starting any of these medicines, and read our medical disclaimer.