MANAMA: There is an immediate need of $100million investments in Bahrain’s health sector in infrastructure and ensuring health services, according to a businessman.
Chairman of board of Work Smart, Ahmed Hujairi revealed that this includes construction of specialized hospitals, centers of alternative medicine, pharmacies and spas as well as expanding the existing ones.
This is, he added, in addition to the economic activities associated with the sector, such as medical insurance and medical tourism companies and others working in the health care sector in general.
“As businessmen, we sensed signs of investment recovery in the health sector through discussions made by the Economic Development Board with American, European, Asian and Turkish to invest in the health and wellness sector describing it as a large market that is full of opportunities in various fields, especially that some of these companies already started working,” Al Hujairi, who is a member of the Health Committee at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said.
Talking about his company’s efforts for Bahrain’s participation National Pavilion in Arab Health Exhibition and Medical Congress in the Middle East to be held in Dubai early next year, he said that Work Smart was making great efforts in terms of providing more room for local health companies to go out to the regional market and to attract more foreign investments to the health sector.
“This all in light of the need to invest more in the health sector for the success of the health insurance scheme set to launch work there in 2018, and as part of the expansion witnessed in the health care market in the GCC countries and the emergence of recent reports suggest that health care is on its way to become an industry in which investment exceeds a billion dollars, at a time when the World Health Organization expects that the health bill for the Arab world would reach $ 60 billion,” Al Hujairi added.
The Bahrain National Pavilion is expected to showcase along with forty pavilions from various countries, among which the Chinese the American pavilions are the biggest as each includes around 500 exhibiting companies, bringing the total participants in the exhibition to nearly four thousand exhibitors offering the latest products and services from the health care sector.
Al Hujairi called upon Bahraini companies to take advantage of taking part in the event in general and in the Bahrain National Pavilion in particular.
“Taking part in the event provides the opportunity of further networking and building complementary and fruitful working relationships. It is also a chance have a comprehensive overview at this sector in Bahrain and to determine growth opportunities and challenges in it.
“Work Smart offers for participants like designing participants’ stands facilitate their travel procedures, accommodation, providing a permanent display platform, securing high-level visits to the pavilion and much more.”