Meet Ahmed Al Sayegh, UAE's New Minister Of Health And Prevention

Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh has built pipelines, launched airlines, created financial centers, and negotiated international energy deals. Now, the UAE's newest Minister of Health and Prevention faces his most unexpected challenge yet: leading the country's healthcare system.

The 63-year-old Abu Dhabi native started his career in the energy sector, climbing through the ranks of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) before heading to Dolphin Energy. There, he managed the well-known cross-border 'Dolphin Gas Project“, a large-scale initiative connecting Qatar, the UAE, and Oman, delivering up to 2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day. The complex role required navigating international regulations, coordinating with multiple governments, and ensuring seamless operations across three countries.

Al Sayegh earned his economics degree from Lewis & Clark College in Oregon before returning home to help build the UAE's modern infrastructure. He became chairman of Abu Dhabi Global Market, the emirate's international financial centre, creating the regulatory framework that convinced global banks and investment firms to establish operations on Al Maryah Island, which is now a financial haven for financial institutions and consultancies from all around the world.

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His institution-building resume reads like a blueprint of UAE development: Chairman of Aldar Properties during its major expansion phase, founding roles at Masdar renewable energy company, and board positions at Etihad Airways when the national carrier launched in 2003.

Since 2018, Al Sayegh has served as Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, managing the UAE's economic relationships with Asian countries and former Soviet states. This portfolio placed him at the centre of trade negotiations, investment agreements, and technology partnerships that were essential in diversifying the UAE's economy beyond oil.

Al Sayegh takes over from AbdulRahman Al Owais, the former health minister, who will now fully focus on his role as Minister of State for Federal National Council Affairs. Al Owais had served as health minister for more than 12 years, revolutionising the UAE's healthcare sector and steering the UAE's pandemic response during COVID-19 while expanding nationwide insurance coverage.

The cabinet reshuffle , announced by Vice President Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum under President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan's directives, places healthcare under the leadership of an experienced individual in large-scale project management and international relations.

Al Sayegh takes the role as health minister as the UAE's healthcare sector increasingly resembles the complex, internationally connected industries where he built his reputation. Healthcare spending in the UAE reached nearly Dh73 billion in 2022, while Dubai's medical tourism generated Dh12.1 billion last year. PureHealth, the region's largest healthcare group, listed on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange in 2023 with a record Dh3.6 billion initial public offering.

Regional patients choose UAE hospitals over traditional overseas destinations, while major international medical institutions establish local operations. Private investment flows into healthcare infrastructure mirror the patterns Al Sayegh navigated in energy and finance.

Al Sayegh now brings this same approach to healthcare, a sector where the UAE treats major hospitals like Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi as strategic national assets and views medical tourism as an economic pillar.

How Al Sayegh applies his financial diplomacy to healthcare will shape the UAE's next chapter as a global hub for medical excellence and innovation.

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