A second multi-million dinar hospital is to be built at what will become Bahrain's biggest medical zone, a report said.

The Central Municipal Council has approved the plan, which comes just over a year after a stretch of land in Buhair was earmarked exclusively for private healthcare facilities, added the report in the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

The zone, on land next to the Al Estiqlal Highway, will house specialist hospitals and clinics, as well as support facilities such as hotels catering to medical tourism.

The first hospital, which is eight storeys tall, was given the go-ahead after assurances from council services and public utilities committee chairman and area councillor Ahmed Al Ansari that residents' privacy would be respected.

"We have gone a long way since the district was initiated and there is huge interest from businessmen," he said.

"Whether it is for hospitals or other support facilities, we are getting an influx of permits for investments in the area. When I first presented the idea in the council, I never thought that it would be successful in the manner it is now, with fears that owners of private villas, which may have swimming pools, may have their privacy invaded."

The councillor said since there had been no complaints more effort was made to promote the medical zone.

"We have been visited by investors who want to open restaurants and recreational facilities close to the first hospital and we have asked them to present us with studies," he added. – TradeArabia News Service