Boston, MA -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/13/2013 -- BMI View: Oman's commendable public healthcare system and high-class tertiary and quaternary care hospitals will increase the uptake of medical tourism by GCC citizens. The Omani pharmaceutical market will continue to remain heavily reliant on imports due to the costly need to source raw ingredients for local manufacturing and lack of R&D backing. However, despite the strict drug pricing system, we are likely to see more multinational companies penetrating the market and expanding volume sales, by addressing the increasing burden of non-communicable diseases in the country.

Headline Expenditure Projections

- Pharmaceuticals: OMR151mn (US$391mn) in 2011 to OMR166mn in 2012; +9.9% in local currency terms and +11.3% in US dollar terms. Forecast revised upwards due to modifications to historical figures.
- Healthcare: OMR742mn (US$1.93bn) in 2011 to OMR839mn (US$2.21bn) in 2012; +13.1% in local currency terms and +14.6% in US dollar terms. Forecast revised upwards due to modifications to historical figures.
- Medical devices: OMR40mn (US$105mn) in 2011 to OMR44mn (US$116mn) in 2012; +9.5% in local currency terms and +10.9% in US dollar terms. Forecast revised upwards due to modifications to historical figures.

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Risk/Reward Rating: BMI's Risk-Reward Rating scores represent a country's pharmaceutical market attractiveness for investment, which includes weightings of risk and rewards analysis of the wider macroeconomic environment. Oman's consistent score of 50.2 out of 100 over the past three quarters places it above the MEA regional average of 44.2, indicating a favourable and stable environment for multinational investment. Oman also currently maintains its position as ninth out of 30 countries in the MEA matrix.

Key Trends And Developments

- In October 2012, two developments occurred concerning the establishment of medical cities to provide quaternary care. The Omani government stated it planned to invest approximately OMR600mn (US$1,55mn) to establish a medical city in Muscat, and the board of Apex Medical Group (AMG), a unit of Saudi Arabia-based al-Joaib Holding, announced it would invest US$1bn in a medical tourism project called International Medical City.
- In September 2012, the Omani Ministry Of Health and US-based pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly initiated a three-year partnership to tackle the country's increasing diabetes burden.
- Also in September 2012, pharmacists from the GCC countries met in Oman to discuss the registration of pharmaceutical companies' new products. The pharmacists met with the GCC Central Committee of Pharmaceutical Registration to discuss improvements to the registration process, which would reduce the number of harmful medicines on the shelves.

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