Ninety per cent of regional healthcare experts pegged the emerging markets of Eastern Europe and the Middle East and Africa as the growth hotspots for the global medical industry.

Peggy Farley, MD of the General Partner and co-founder of Ascent Medical Technology Funds, said that new research has revealed that 94 per cent of regional healthcare experts and economists predict that demand for medical technology will rise considerably during the next three years.

“The Middle East is a very attractive market for foreign investments right now, especially in the medical technology sector which, at best, can be described as being at the ‘grass root stage’.'

Growth of the Middle East’s medical sector is set to increase from its current GDP contribution of 10 per cent to 25 per cent by 2020, she stated.

She said that with the right infrastructure in place, the region can become a hub for manufacturing focused on medical devices that comply with international standards.

'The region could become a true medical centre; a hive of activity for new medical discovery,” Farley stated.

She concluded that innovation in medical devices and pharmaceuticals will create knock-on effect on jobs, increase wealth and improve the overall health of the region's population.

The Ascent Medical Technology Fund II, LP was established in 2006 and is dedicated to advancing medical innovation through investing in early-commercialisation stage companies based in the US and the Middle East that have sufficient technologies to positively effect dramatic changes in the treatment of serious global health issues such as cardiovascular disease and cancer.-TradeArabia News Service