According to PharmaTimes, the introduction of mass health insurance, liberalization initiatives and the Middle East governments’s desire to become self-sufficient in pharmaceuticals production may herald a prospective future for the global drug makers. Increased access to generics and innovative new medicines due to spread of health insurance and rise in chronic diseases are also believed to create wide opportunities of growth in the middle east pharma market.
The Middle East pharmaceutical market is expected to grow around 10%-15% annually compared to less than 5% a year growth predicted in the mature markets of the US and Europe. Initiatives like offering free zones to overseas firms, including 100% ownership and tax benefits, to set up within developments such as Saudi Arabia’s $534 million King Fahd Medical City in Riyadh and the Dubai Biotechnology and Research Park, are expected to fuel rapid growth in the region’s overall market for biotechnology products.