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Health

Health news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

Saudi Arabia's new strategy fouses on sectors such as genomics to make the kingdom a regional biotech leader

Saudi biotech strategy aims to dominate regional industry

Saudi Arabia has launched a National Biotechnology Strategy with the aim of becoming the region’s biotech leader by 2030 and a global leader by 2040, contributing 3 percent, or SAR130 billion ($35 billion), to non-oil GDP.  The strategy was unveiled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman with the aim of improving Saudi health standards, helping […]

Ades Holding is expected to raise about $1.22bn from selling more than 338.72 million existing and new shares

Avalon Pharma’s market value at $437m on listing

Saudi Arabia’s Middle East Pharmaceutical Industries Company (Avalon Pharma) has priced its initial public offering (IPO) at the top of its range at SAR82 ($21.87), implying a market capitalisation of SAR1.64 billion ($437.33 million) on listing. The recorded orders during the institutional book-building stood at SAR68.27 billion, representing a coverage of 138.76 times. The retail […]

Medics monitor a hospital patient. Almost 33,000 surgeries and procedures were performed at the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi in 2023

Healthy rise in medical tourism to Abu Dhabi clinic

The number of overseas patients travelling to the UAE for treatment at the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi rose by 20 percent in 2023, the hospital’s CEO has said. Overseas visitors make up 1.5 percent of the patients treated each year at the Cleveland Clinic hospital on Al Maryah Island. Its CEO, Dr Jorge Guzman, told […]

Kuwait faced a shortage of 7.5% of medicines in 2022 and it is now trying to improve its domestic pharmaceutical sector

Kuwait’s pharmaceutical plan may need a shot in the arm

Kuwait will continue to lag behind its GCC neighbours in attracting investment into its pharmaceutical sector despite new government measures, say experts. The Ministry of Health announced plans last month to set up warehouses across health districts, adding new facilities to improve medication storage and delivery. It said it is also developing a guide for […]

UAE’s Response Plus buys UK healthcare firm Prometheus

Abu Dhabi-listed healthcare provider Response Plus Holding’s unit has acquired Prometheus Medical, a UK-headquartered healthcare training and consultancy services company. The acquisition will accelerate Response Plus Medical’s (RPM) entry into the UK and Nordic region, strengthening its training capabilities and expanding its portfolio to cover health consultancy for emergency preparedness and response, the company said […]

Saudi women in face masks Covid-19

Saudis advised to go back to masks in crowded spaces

Saudi Arabia has advised people to return to wearing masks in crowded public places after the spread of a new Covid-19 variant, but has told the public there is no cause for concern.  “Try to wear a face mask when in crowded places, for your protection and protecting others from respiratory infection,” the Public Health […]

Saudi German Health runs hospitals and clinics in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Yemen

GCC companies lead early sukuk moves in 2024

Saudi Arabia’s largest healthcare provider has announced plans to issue a riyal-denominated sukuk as analysts predict that $170 billion of the sharia-compliant bonds will be issued this year. Middle East Healthcare Company, the parent of Saudi German Health, said in a filing to the Saudi Stock Exchange that the offering size would be determined later, […]

Aster expects the sale of its GCC business to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2024

Aster DM plans dividend payout from Gulf unit sale

India’s Aster DM Healthcare intends to distribute between 70 percent and 80 percent of the $903 million proceeds it will receive from selling its Gulf business. The company agreed in November 2023 to sell a majority stake in its Gulf business to Alpha GCC Holdings for $1 billion as part of a plan to separate […]

Of GII's $4 billion assets under management, around $400 million is in the medical sector

Dubai’s GII invests $160m in Saudi medical group

Sharia-compliant asset management group Gulf Islamic Investments (GII) has invested $160 million (SAR 600 million) in Saudi Arabia’s Abeer Medical Group. Abeer is the largest affordable healthcare services provider in Saudi Arabia, operating 50 medical centres, clinics, hospitals, pharmacies, and optical centres across GCC countries and India. GII co-founder and co-CEO Mohammed Alhassan said the […]

The acquisition of Circle Health Group by the UAE's PureHealth achieved regulatory approvals in record time

PureHealth acquires UK’s Circle Health for $1.2bn

PureHealth, the largest healthcare platform in the Middle East, has acquired Circle Health Group, the UK’s largest operator of hospitals, for $1.2 billion, as part of its global expansion strategy. The deal completion achieved regulatory approvals in record time, the company said in a statement. “After investing in Ardent Health USA, this is PureHealth’s second […]

PIF intends to divest stakes in its portfolio companies to bolster the economic transformation under Vision 2030

Avalon Pharma finalises price range for IPO

Saudi Arabia’s Middle East Pharmaceutical Industries Company (Avalon Pharma) has set the offer price range for its proposed initial public offering (IPO). The price range has been set between SAR78 and SAR82 ($20.80-$21.87), the company said in a statement. The institutional book-building period will run from January 14 to 18. The home-grown pharmaceutical maker will […]

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets Thailand's then Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha in November 2022, during the APEC summit in Bangkok

Healthcare, hydrogen and more: Saudi-Thai deals in sight

Saudi Arabia and Thailand are strengthening economic ties with prospective deals in healthcare, hydrogen and agriculture after patching up a longstanding diplomatic spat. The two nations reached a rapprochement in January 2022, more than three decades after a dispute over a 1989 jewellery heist known as the Blue Diamond Affair.  “The economic opportunities from cooperation […]

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, attending the Arab Strategy Forum 2024

Dubai unveils $56bn plan to improve standard of living

Dubai has unveiled a AED208 billion ($56.64 billion) ten-year strategy aimed at making the city one of the top three in the world for standard of living. There are also plans to double the number of Emirati families and triple the number of citizens working in the private sector by 2033. “We aim to double […]

A seller in Jeddah's fish market, where freshly caught fish are sold at 100 stalls from 5am every day

Think Jeddah, think fish

For generations of pilgrims travelling to Mecca and Medina, the thriving port city of Jeddah on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast is known as the gateway to the two Holy Mosques.  With protein and nutrition comes strength and in the harsh conditions of Arabia it’s the fittest and strongest who thrive. No wonder then that […]

Pure Health is offering 1.11 billion ordinary shares through the IPO, or 10 percent of its total issued share capital

High demand puts Pure Health IPO order book at $72bn  

Pure Health, the largest healthcare group in the Middle East, set the final price for its initial public offering (IPO) at AED3.26 ($0.89), raising AED3.62 billion following strong demand from investors. The company is offering 1.11 billion ordinary shares, or 10 percent of its total issued share capital, on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX). The […]

Co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, with Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan at the Reaching the Last Mile Forum 2023

UAE president expands fund to fight tropical diseases

Reaching the Last Mile – a global philanthropic health initiative by UAE president Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan – has increased the size of its flagship fund five-fold to $500 million, with $340.2 million raised to date, following donations made during Cop28.   The 10-year RLM Fund was set up in 2017, in partnership […]

Climate funding for health needs to scale up tenfold

Levels of climate funding directed towards global health must be multiplied tenfold in order to address the “devastating” risks associated with global warming, according to Maria Neira, director for environment, climate change and health at the World Health Organization (WHO). Currently just 0.5 percent of climate funds are reaching the health system, despite pollution claiming […]

Aster expects the sale of its GCC business to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2024

Aster DM to sell majority stake in Gulf business for $1bn

UAE-based hospital chain Aster DM Healthcare will sell a majority stake in its Gulf business to a regional consortium for $1 billion as part of a plan to separate the unit from its Indian operations. A consortium led by state-backed Fajr Capital will own 65 percent of the Gulf business, while Azad Moopen, the founder […]

Saudi Arabia wants to localise the production of more pharmaceutical products and at the same time expand sales to global markets

Saudi’s Avalon plans massive export drive

The Saudi pharmaceuticals firm Avalon Pharma plans to treble revenue to SAR1.1 billion ($290 million), with a drive to increase exports from 10 percent to 30 percent of output. As Saudi Arabia pushes to produce within its own borders more of the medicines it consumes, Maher Al Ghannam, managing director and CEO of Avalon Pharma, […]

PureHealth has this year acquired Circle Health Group in the UK and Ardent Health Services in the US

PureHealth plans to launch IPO on Abu Dhabi exchange

Healthcare provider PureHealth Holding has announced plans to launch an initial public offering (IPO) on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange to fuel its global expansion efforts. The listing, likely to be in December, is subject to regulatory approvals, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported. Existing shareholders are Alpha Dhabi Holding and International Holding Company […]

Architecture, Building, Car

NMC Health censured by UK financial authority

UAE healthcare operator NMC has been censured by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for misleading the market to the tune of $4 billion. Founded by Indian businessman BR Shetty in the mid-1970s, NMC ran into difficulties after short-seller Muddy Waters called into question its financial reporting and doubts emerged over the size of stakes […]