By Gokhan Ergocun
ISTANBUL (AA) – Türkiye has a well-developed and advanced health system, offering experience in the sector that can be useful for the UAE, according to the Emirati envoy to Ankara.
The UAE is keen to utilize Turkish expertise in the health sector, Ambassador Saeed Thani Hareb Al Dhaheri told Anadolu at the Health Tourism Expo in Istanbul on Thursday.
Both our countries have a developed healthcare system and our collective experience in the field is helpful for the region, he said.
Türkiye hosts tens of millions of foreign tourists every year, including people coming in for the medical facilities. The number of medical tourists reached 1.2 million last year.
“There is a very good number for health tourism (between UAE and Türkiye). In total, we have 140,000 people coming for tourism (to Türkiye),” said Al Dhaheri.
On bilateral ties, the envoy said relations are growing and reaching ever higher levels, especially due to recent top-level bilateral visits.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the UAE in July, while Emirati leader Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was in Türkiye in June 2022.
Türkiye is among the UAE’s top 10 commercial partners, and the two sides have signed several new financial and economic cooperation deals over the past two years.
“So this is an indicator of the relations between the two countries and the aspect of investments and economy,” Al Dhaheri said.
He said the two countries want to further develop their business ties, adding that their respective companies are very enthusiastic for progress on that front.
There are different areas with potential for investors of both countries, including technology, artificial intelligence, renewable energy, and space, Al Dhaheri added.