The UAE is strengthening its position in the Middle East’s growing biopharmaceutical sector through investments in genomics, artificial intelligence (AI), precision medicine and advanced manufacturing, according to a new analysis by Frost & Sullivan commissioned by World Health Expo (WHX).
The report, From Discovery to Delivery: The Technologies Reshaping Global Biopharma, forecasts precision medicine in the Middle East to grow by 10–12% annually over the next five to seven years. It highlights the UAE’s efforts to build capabilities across the biopharma value chain, from research and drug discovery to manufacturing.
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The Emirati Genome Program aims to collect one million genetic samples, while the UAE Reference Genome study is analysing more than 50,000 samples to support disease prevention, precision treatment and healthcare research.
Aarti Chitale, Industry Principal, Healthcare & Lifesciences Growth Analytics, Frost & Sullivan, said: “The biopharma industry is moving towards an increasingly connected model in which precision medicine, AI and advanced manufacturing reinforce one another across the development lifecycle. In the Middle East, and particularly in the UAE, the foundations for that transition are already being built through investment in genomics, digital infrastructure, localisation and global partnerships”
Abu Dhabi’s Health, Endurance, Longevity and Medicine (HELM) cluster is also expected to attract more than AED 42 billion in investment, contribute over AED 94 billion to the emirate’s GDP and create around 30,000 jobs by 2045.
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AI is emerging as another major driver. In 2025, Insilico Medicine’s Abu Dhabi centre identified the UAE’s first fully AI-discovered preclinical drug candidates for oncology and non-opioid pain.
Solenne Singer, Senior Vice President, Healthcare, inD, said: “The findings demonstrate why biopharma has become such an important part of the healthcare growth story in the UAE and the wider Middle East. The UAE is bringing together many of the capabilities required to compete in the next phase of the industry. For WHX, the opportunity is to connect that rapidly developing ecosystem with the global organisations leading pharma”
The findings coincide with WHX’s launch of a new Pharma Zone for 2027, alongside dedicated Biotech and Longevity and Wellness Zones, aimed at connecting global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with investors, healthcare buyers and commercial partners.
