Saudi Arabia’s medical devices market is poised to reach $1.6 billion by 2018, with a projected annual growth rate of nine per cent over the next five years, said a report.

This growth is mainly due to an overall increase in health care spending by the government, rise in per capita income, growing penetration of the healthcare insurance, and huge investment in both human resource and infrastructure, stated CompuGroup Medical (CGM), a leading IT healthcare solution provider in the region, in its report.

It pointed out that there was a need to boost the local production of medical devices which is currently restricted to very few items.

The company said that it would limit the reliance of the kingdom’s healthcare sector on imports which account for more than 80 per cent of the overall market value.

Thomas Reitmayr, vice president – Business Development, CGM Central and East Europe, said that the company has introduced a number of scalable technology products and solutions that continue to play major roles in enhancing the quality and extent of healthcare across the Saudi Arabia, including the Corttex Integrated Hospital Information Management System Environment, the CGM CNG Clinical Information Systems, and the iOS-based iCNG Mobile Applications.

“The government of Saudi Arabia is highly proactive in the development of healthcare facilities both in terms of planning and building of new treatment centres and upgrading and improvement of existing facilities," he added. - TradeArabia News Service