Health

Mubadala Bio launches to bolster UAE drug security

May 20, 2025, 4:35 PM

Mubadala Bio aims to bring pharmaceutical manufacturing in-country and reduce reliance on imports

Mubadala Bio to oversee 10 facilities
UAE pharma imports worth $6bn
Aiming for self-sufficiency

Mubadala Investment Company, Abu Dhabi’s $330 billion sovereign wealth fund, has launched a dedicated life sciences unit as part of a broader strategy to boost domestic pharmaceutical production, improve healthcare resilience and support the UAE’s economic diversification efforts.

The new entity, Mubadala Bio, will oversee a portfolio of 10 manufacturing facilities across Asia, Africa, and Europe — six of which are already based in the UAE.

Collectively, these sites serve more than 100 countries and boast an annual manufacturing capacity of 2.5 billion tablets and capsules and 120 million IVs and injectables, and span over 110,000 sq m, the company said on Monday at the Make it in the Emirates forum in Abu Dhabi.

“The pandemic showed us the importance of self-sufficiency and preventive care,” said Dr Bakheet Al Katheeri, CEO of the UAE Investments platform at Mubadala. “This is more than a new venture; it is a commitment to resilience and innovation as we aim to bring better health closer for all.”

The sovereign investor is positioning Mubadala Bio as a “national champion” to help reduce the country’s heavy reliance on imported pharmaceuticals — a market worth more than $6 billion in 2023, according to UN Comtrade data.

Fitch Solutions projects that by 2028, the UAE’s pharmaceutical import dependence could decline modestly to 87 percent, with patented drugs accounting for 69 percent of the total market.

The new platform builds on Mubadala’s recent activity in the sector. In January its subsidiary Kelix Bio acquired DiabTec, a diabetes-focused unit of Julphar, one of the Middle East and Africa’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturers.

The deal — Kelix Bio’s fifth strategic move since March 2024 — included a production facility featuring 20,000-litre drug substance reactors and a cartridge fill-finish line built to US and EU Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards.

The push aligns with the UAE’s national ambitions to become a regional hub for advanced life sciences and health innovation. Nearly 8 percent of the UAE’s 2023–2026 federal budget has been allocated to the Ministry of Health and Prevention, as the government steps up efforts to expand local capacity and reduce exposure to global supply chain shocks.

In April, Abu Dhabi’s Department of Economic Development, in partnership with the Department of Health and Abu Dhabi Investment Office, launched the Health, Endurance, Longevity and Medicine cluster. The initiative is hoped to contribute $25.6 billion to the emirate’s GDP, generate 30,000 new jobs, and attract $11.5 billion in investment by 2045.

Earlier this month, the state-backed Abu Dhabi Investment Office announced plans to expand its US operations in San Francisco to secure new funds for the local health sector. The expansion will allow health innovators and entrepreneurs to build and test solutions with Abu Dhabi, Mansoor Ibrahim Al Mansoori, chairman of the Department of Health in Abu Dhabi, said.

Separately, the UAE is also moving to expand its footprint in critical materials for health and tech. Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, CEO of Emirates Global Aluminium, announced a deal with RTX and the Tawazun Council to make the UAE the largest producer of gallium — a critical mineral used in semiconductors, EVs, and medical devices – outside China.

“If you mix gallium with salt it can treat a lot of cancers and you can use it also for a lot of drugs which can help you with any inflammation in the body,” he said at the Make it in the Emirates event on Monday.