MENA (Middle East and North Africa)

MENA is comprised of many countries in the North of Africa and Middle East including Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, South Africa and United Arab Emirates.

Almost two-thirds of the 3,300 hospitals in the region are government-owned, with the majority of these facilities found in Egypt, KSA, Algeria, and Morocco. The public sector is responsible for 64% of regional healthcare expenditure – however this proportion is shrinking as more private companies enter the market, driven by government attempts to attract private enterprise.

Vast differences across the region make it unrealistic to use one proxy for the entire region, however the MENA countries do cluster into smaller groups. The six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, KSA, and UAE have similarities in terms of healthcare systems, culture and language. KSA is often used to represent these countries as it represents the biggest market by far. There are cultural and language similarities in the Mahgreb (North Africa) although Algeria is more focused on the public healthcare system. In the Levant (Eastern Mediterranean), Israel’s universal healthcare system is unique within the region, while Jordan is more similar to KSA.

Our emerging markets team has considerable expertise in MENA having conducted over 60 projects in 13 Middle Eastern and Northern African and can support you with your market research needs.