Application-based market taxonomy splits demand into malaria, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), lupus erythematosus, COVID-19, and other off-label uses, with malaria historically driving volume but newer indications altering pricing power. Public-sector malaria programmes remain the single largest sink, yet declining susceptibility of Plasmodium falciparum has compressed protocol-driven consumption in Sub-Saharan Africa by ~8 % CAGR since 2015, pushing manufacturers to repurpose capacity. Conversely, the RA and lupus segments exhibit inelastic demand among patients refractory to first-line DMARDs; here, chloroquine’s immunomodulatory profile secures a stable 10–12 % revenue share despite modest prescription counts. The pandemic-related COVID-19 spike in 2020–21 temporarily lifted volumes tenfold, but subsequent regulatory withdrawals have normalised this to <4 %. Other indications—discoid lupus, amoebic hepatitis, Porphyria cutanea tarda—represent fragmented scripts with limited evidence, jointly accounting for low-single-digit share yet collectively cushioning revenue volatility for generic suppliers.
