UAE-based healthcare group Avivo eyes MENA expansion

UAE-based healthcare group Avivo is planning to expand its presence in the GCC and North Africa, its CEO has said.

The group currently operates two hospitals – National Hospital in Abu Dhabi and Conceive in Sharjah as well as 29 clinics including 10 dental centres with labs, six pharmacies and two diagnostic facilities across the UAE.

It also has six distribution centres and two training centres.

With a presence in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and Kuwait, Avivo is now looking to expand in the coming months into countries such as Saudi Arabia, said CEO Dr.Dilshaad Ali.

“We are always on the growth path and keep looking to expand. We see the Middle East itself is growing, so our geographical expansion looks at Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman to a large extent and also looking into North Africa for the existing facilities and other new opportunities that come our way,” he said.

Avivo is also discussing private-public partnerships in some countries.

The group is also expanding its speciality line, which will include neuro-spinal, anti-ageing, urology, and advanced gastroenterology.

“We have launched a centre of excellence in plastic surgery run by resident and visiting doctors from the US and Europe. We also have plans to launch a global rhinoplasty centre of excellence soon comprising five nose surgeons from around the world,” said Ali.

Ali said the growth would come from the hospital segment, since it have a “robust referral network” to fill-up future in-patient occupancies.

“We have segmented our assets into low-end and mid-to-high end clinics. Some of our clinics are currently being transformed into speciality clinics offering surgical services that will help us in increasing our revenue base significantly,” he added.

The private healthcare sector in the GCC region is estimated to reach $94bn in 2021, up from $62bn in 2016, according to a report by MENA Research Partners (MRP).

Saudi Arabia and the UAE represent more than two third of the market, the report added.

The private sector has to play a major role in strengthening the local healthcare industry to keep pace with rising demand in the region, said Ali.

“Encouraging private sector investment in the region, the government should build the confidence to invest and bring the latest technologies to the local population. The current efforts of the Dubai government to promote medical tourism is an excellent initiative to enhance the healthcare infrastructure and improve the quality of delivery to reach global standards,” he added.