By Mohammed Ayyad
Abraaj will begin receiving offers for shares for the Cairo Medical Centre (CMC) and the Cairo Investment and Real Estate Development (CIRA) on Tuesday. According to Amr Helal, Managing Director of Abraaj, the opening for offers will start following the publication of the tender offer and the approval from the financial regulator to acquire 100% of CMC and a stake in CIRA.
Helal continued saying Abraaj would also be monitoring other sectors to seek out other potential investment opportunities.
Following the completion of the second step in the political roadmap, Helal mentioned that Abraaj anticipates a period of political stability in order to draw in further investments. He maintained however, that “the value of Egyptian assets are still attractive for investments”, and thus so too, are the implementation of deals within a number of sectors.
Helal would not respond in regards to whether or not Abraaj is negotiating to acquire Nozha Hospital and Cleopatra Hospital as part of its intended expansion in the health sector.
“We look forward to investing in the CMC, as this investment provides a significant growth potential based on our experience in the healthcare sector and our experience in investing in a large number of countries around the world,” said Helal. Abraaj is confident in its ability to enable the hospital to meet growing demands for high-quality medical services, he added.
According to Helal, Abraaj has considerable experience in the hospital sector, having invested in Acibadem, one of the leading healthcare groups in Turkey. Acibadem has seen significant growth and has increased its total number of hospitals from six to 14.
Because we are the biggest players in the healthcare sector in the Middle East and North Africa, we are planning to not only provide capital, but also expertise and competencies– things which have developed our companies in the past, said Helal.
The acquisition of the CMC is aimed at renewing its medical services, modernizing equipment, and training staff, said Helal. He continued, saying investment in both the CMC and CIRA are part of a strategy to assist in “the provision of high quality, comprehensive healthcare services at affordable prices, to improve the general level of patient care.”
