DUBAI: Slow growth for Dubai medical tourism

Despite major investment in facilities, marketing and government support, Dubai expects a modest single figure growth in medical tourism in each of the next three years.

Dubai Health Authority and the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing are working together to promote medical tourism. Marketing spend at medical tourism conferences and exhibitions as far away as Moscow and Monaco is substantial.

In 2012, Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai told many of the organizations that he controls to do everything possible to finally deliver on the medical tourism investment that has been made for the last five years.

The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) and the General Directorate for Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) have agreed to simplify and speed up the medical tourism visa process, so that overseas patients who wish to have treatment in Dubai can take advantage of a three-month medical tourist visa, extendible twice, up to nine consecutive months.

Part of the initiative is encouraging global healthcare providers to set up businesses and increasing both government and private investment in healthcare. The Dubai Health Authority has completed a comprehensive capacity survey of public and private healthcare facilities in Dubai under the Dubai Clinical Services Capacity Plan (DCSCP) 2020. Eisa Al Maidour of the DHA explains,” This information will provide investors with the necessary data for investment. The DCSCP will point out the specialities and sub-specialities where investment is needed. The data will definitely make Dubai’s healthcare environment attractive for investors.”

Marwan Abedin of Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC) estimates that 15% of its patients are medical tourists, and that the number of inbound medical tourists in Dubai was up 10% to15% in 2012; this is an estimate only. But growth for 2013 to 2015 is expected to be lower at 7.2 % a year. DHCC states that it attracted 410,000 patients in 2010, and 502,000 in 2011. Latest estimates for 2012 are at around 550,000. At various times DHCC claims 15% or 20% of patients as medical travellers; but this is actually all international travellers, including business people and holidaymakers. Exactly how many are real medical tourists is a question that remains to be answered;? it is likely to be around 50,000 and 80,000 and thus in line with other significant destinations.

Most medical tourists to Dubai are from the GCC and the wider region; as well as people from countries including Libya, Iraq, Iran, Nigeria, Tunisia, India, Pakistan, and Russia. The original idea that Dubai would appeal to Americans and Western Europeans has been abandoned.

Part of the initiative is to persuade UAE residents to stay home to get treated, rather than go overseas, and that is beginning to work as the number of UAE based patients were up 12% in 2012. Although the majority of patients living in the UAE prefer to be close to home, many others still prefer to be treated outside the Mena region? in Europe or North America. Some patients do so because the country lacks the specialisations they require, which can be found in other countries; while others do not trust the public hospitals, and the cost of treatment in Dubai is high compared to Asian competitors.

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GLOBAL: Tourism growth outperforms global economy in 2012

The tourism industry has outperformed the global economy in 2012 - growing faster than manufacturing, retail, financial services and communications- says the ‘Economic Impact of Travel & Tourism 2013’ report from WTCC.

Tourism has grown its total contribution to GDP by 3% cent and increased the number of jobs by 5 million to 260 million. It means that, for the first time, one in 11 of all jobs in the world are now supported by tourism. More than 10% of all new jobs created in 2012 were from the industry.

Medical tourism is still a very small niche sector within this global industry and it is easy to forget how relatively unimportant it is compared to rivals such as religious tourism, wellness tourism, environmental tourism and holiday tourism.

According to research from the World Travel & Tourism Council, in 2012, tourism’s total economic contribution - taking account of its direct, indirect and induced impacts - was US$6.6 trillion in GDP. This is a rise of US$500 billion year-on-year.

Tourism supports US$765 billion in investment and US$1.2 trillion in exports. This represents 9% of total GDP, 5% of total investment and 5% of world exports.

Among the 20 largest global economies, South Korea, China, South Africa and Indonesia performed best. Growth of less than 1% in Europe and 2% in the USA was counter-balanced by 10% growth in South Korea, 7% in China, 7% in South Africa and 6% in Indonesia. These countries are all expected to grow during 2013, along with Japan, Brazil, and India. Africa and Latin American will also grow quicker than Europe or North America. Successful destination countries will be those that have an infrastructure, facilities and attitude to welcome overseas travellers-particularly the middle class Asian ones who want a good standard of travel, accommodation and destination. WTTC forecasts that China will overtake the USA to be the world’s biggest travel and tourism economy by 2023.

For more than 20 years, with research partner Oxford Economics, WTTC has produced comprehensive economic reports on an annual basis, with updates and special reports to quantify, compare and forecast the economic impact of travel and tourism on 184 economies and 24 regions around the world.

WTTC predicts the tourism industry will expand its total contribution to GDP by 3.2 % in 2013, faster than the 2.4 % predicted for global economic growth. The industry is expected to support nearly 266 million jobs in 2013 and again outperform many other industries.

David Scowsill of WTCC says, “2012 demonstrated again just how resilient the tourism industry is. Despite many economic difficulties, last year, for the first time, we saw more than one billion international travellers pass through the world’s ports, airports, roads and railway stations for the first time. This industry is an important driver for countries’ economic development and growth strategies. Our industry is responsible for creating jobs, lifting people out of poverty, and broadening horizons. But we need international institutions and governments to recognise its strength, to remove restrictive visa and tax regimes and to work with the private sector to stimulate that growth.”

Medical tourism has to take notice of where tourism is growing, and accept that as part of a growing industry it must learn from other sectors of the travel business. ?

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