UAE tops Forbes list of most powerful leaders in the Middle East

The UAE continued to dominate the Forbes Middle East list: The Region’s Most Powerful Healthcare Leaders 2024, which focuses on the leaders of the largest and most innovative healthcare companies in the region. The list included 51 leaders from the UAE, followed by Saudi Arabia with 23 leaders, then Egypt with eight leaders.

List preparation criteria The list was prepared based on several criteria, including: business size such as revenues, assets and investments, diversity of operations, innovative initiatives, the leader’s experience, his influence in the sector, and his achievements.

Top Leaders in the Ranking For the second year in a row, Shaista Asif, co-founder and CEO of UAE-based Pure Health Holdings, topped the rankings. The group generated revenues of $3.4 billion and assets of $13 billion in the first half of 2024.

In second place was Saeed Darwazah, executive chairman of Hikma Pharmaceuticals, which in May established a new subsidiary in Spain and opened a commercial office in the UK in June.

The third place was taken by Sulaiman Al Habib, founder and chairman of the board of directors of Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Services Group.

New investments and developments The GCC has seen a significant increase in healthcare investment, leading to significant developments in the sector and the emergence of new leaders on the list this year. Notable among them is Nasser Al-Haqbani, CEO of Saudi Arabia’s Seha Holding Company, which will manage the Ministry of Health’s assets, and Mazen Fakih, chairman of Fakih Healthcare Group, who led the group’s listing on the Saudi Tadawul in June.

Sector Developments and Notable Leaders The sector has seen further developments led by Hassan Jasem Al Nowais, Managing Director and CEO of M42 Group in the UAE, after the merger of Mubadala Healthcare with G42 Healthcare last April.

Dominance of pharmaceutical and hospital sectors In terms of sectors, pharmaceutical company leaders dominated the ranking with 33 leaders, followed by 31 leaders in the hospital sector, 13 leaders from companies operating in diverse sectors, five leaders each from the medical devices and technology sectors, and three leaders from major pharmacy chains.

Of the top 10 leaders in the ranking, four operate in the hospital sector, while four others lead diversified companies operating in the sector.

Pioneering initiatives Last April, Alice Yamin Boyes, CEO of the Arab Hospitals Federation, led a collaboration with the Geneva Centre for Sustainability and the World Health Organization to improve environmental sustainability and promote resilient healthcare systems. In May, Sidra Medicine CEO Iyabo Tinubu Karch announced the launch of Qatar’s first pediatric stem cell transplant program in collaboration with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Last July, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, led by CEO Majid Al Fayyadh, collaborated with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology to develop a new gene sequencing system called NanoRinger to identify genetic diseases caused by unknown mutations.