Saudi awards first PPP project in healthcare sector

Ministry of Health

Saudi Arabia’s health ministry has awarded one of the kingdom’s first public-private partnerships (PPP) in the healthcare sector to Riyadh-based Altakassusi Alliance Medical. 

The project will deliver better radiology and imaging services to more than one million people across seven hospitals – King Fahad Medical City, Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz Hospital, Al Dawadmi General Hospital, Al Zulfi General Hospital, King Khaled Hospital-Al-Majmaah, Al Yamamah Hospital and Al Artawiyah General Hospital.

The PPP will also offer the country’s first remote reading and reporting diagnostic services in the linked hospitals, serving under-served and remote areas.

Altakassusi Alliance Medical, a regional diagnostic imaging company, is a joint venture between Alliance Medical Group, Europe’s independent imaging services provider, Nexus Gulf Healthcare and King Faisal Specialist Hospital International Holding.

Altakassusi will work with more than 450 staff and manage patient services in the radiology and nuclear medicine departments of the seven hospitals.

The ministry tendered the project in cooperation with the National Center for Privatization & PPP (NCP), offering a concession period of 10 years. All treatments and radiology services will be provided free of charge and help reduce patient wait time.

“Saudi Arabia has been actively improving healthcare by creating opportunities for the private sector aimed at creating value for patients,” said Nart Mamser, general manager at Altakassusi Alliance Medical.

NCP has approved a pipeline of 200 projects spanning 17 sectors, involving more than $50 billion in investment.

Projects include four airports, seven desalination plants, six wastewater treatment plants, 10 strategic water reservoirs and a transit-oriented development project in Makkah.

A further 300 projects are being evaluated. 

Mohammed Al Jadaan, Saudi minister of finance and chairman of the board of NCP, said previously that he kingdom had privatised 30 projects over the last five years.

“Healthcare and education are especially high priority sectors for privatisation,”  said Sarah Al-Shawwaf, senior vice president of Albright Stonebridge Group.