Read the Conversation
Conversation highlights:
- 2025-2026 Transformation: A period of regulatory evolution and consolidation shaping a more resilient and patient-focused healthcare ecosystem in the Gulf.
- Strategic Importance of the Gulf: Population growth, proactive national health agendas, and long-term investment in healthcare infrastructure and talent.
- Collaborative Partnerships: Merck’s role as a contributor and partner, working alongside Governments in the Gulf to support national healthcare priorities.
- Diabetes as a Public Health Priority: Collaborative efforts focused on prevention, early detection, data generation, and policy-informed decision-making.
- Fertility Access & Awareness: Supporting Government efforts to drive awareness, access to care, and informed decision-making in reproductive health.
- Future Healthcare Capabilities: The growing importance of digital and data capabilities, emotional intelligence, and trusted health education.
- Leadership and Purpose: A career shaped by patient impact, collaboration, and a sustained commitment to improving lives.
EF: How do you reflect on 2025, and what are your key priorities looking ahead to 2026?
AA: 2025 has been a year of meaningful transformation for healthcare, particularly in the Gulf. Across the region, we have seen continued evolution in regulations, stronger alignment around national health priorities, and a shared focus on improving patient outcomes.
At the same time, the global environment has remained complex, with shifts in trade frameworks and regulatory approaches influencing how industries operate worldwide. The Gulf has responded to this thoughtfully, strengthening its healthcare ecosystem while remaining open, collaborative, and forward-looking.
As we look to 2026, the focus remains on ensuring patients receive the right care at the right time, while continuing to operate responsibly within an evolving regulatory and trade landscape. We see this period as an important phase of consolidation, embedding the changes of recent years and creating a stable foundation for sustainable growth beyond 2026.
EF: Why is this region strategically significant to Merck?
AA: The Gulf is a dynamic and fast-evolving region, with Governments making long-term investments in healthcare infrastructure, talent, and innovation. Population growth, ambitious national visions, and a strong commitment to improving quality of care all contribute to an environment where meaningful progress can be achieved.
From a healthcare perspective, the region is proactive. Governments are not only expanding access to care but also placing greater emphasis on prevention, early intervention, and data-informed decision-making. This creates opportunities for collaboration across the healthcare ecosystem, where companies like Merck can contribute knowledge, experience, and innovation in support of national priorities.
EF: How are you collaborating with different stakeholders to advance healthcare in the region?
AA: Each country in the Gulf has its own healthcare priorities, shaped by national strategies and population needs. Our approach is to listen carefully and align our efforts with those priorities, working as a partner within the broader healthcare ecosystem.
We collaborate closely with Ministries of Health, regulators, healthcare professionals, and other stakeholders to support initiatives that focus on long-term impact. Governments lead these agendas, and our role is to contribute where our scientific expertise, global experience, and local presence can add value.
EF: Diabetes has been a key area of focus in the region. How are these collaborations making a difference?
AA: Diabetes is one of the most significant public health challenges across the Gulf, with wide-ranging implications for individuals, families, and healthcare systems. Governments have been very clear about the importance of addressing this challenge not only through treatment, but also through prevention and early intervention.
Our collaboration with health authorities, including the UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention, has focused on supporting national efforts around awareness, early detection, and data generation. By working together, it has been possible to gain deeper insights into the disease burden and to inform policy discussions around prevention, screening, and reimbursement pathways.
What is most encouraging is seeing how these initiatives contribute to earlier engagement with patients and a stronger focus on pre-diabetes and prevention, marking an important shift that can make a long-term difference to public health outcomes.
EF: Beyond diabetes, fertility has also been an important topic in the Gulf. How is Merck contributing in this area?
AA: Fertility is closely linked to broader societal and demographic priorities in the region, and it is an area where awareness and access to information are particularly important. Merck has a long-standing commitment to fertility care, supported by decades of scientific research and innovation.
Our work in the Gulf has focused on supporting Government-led initiatives that aim to raise awareness, expand access to diagnostics and treatment, and empower individuals, particularly women, with accurate information so they can make informed decisions about their reproductive health.
This is not about directing choices, but about ensuring people have access to trusted information and appropriate medical support when they need it.
EF: What capabilities do you believe are essential to drive the future of healthcare?
AA: Healthcare today requires a broader set of capabilities than ever before. Scientific expertise remains fundamental, but it must be complemented by digital and data capabilities, an understanding of evolving healthcare systems, and strong collaboration skills.
At the same time, emotional intelligence has become increasingly important. As healthcare becomes more digital, we must ensure that interactions remain human, empathetic, and centred around patients’ real needs.
Another critical area is health education. With the abundance of information available online, it is essential that patients receive accurate, reliable guidance through trusted channels such as healthcare professionals and medical institutions. Supporting this responsibly is a shared responsibility across the healthcare ecosystem.
EF: As you approach a major career milestone (25 years at Merck), what stands out when you look back?
AA: I feel a deep sense of gratitude for the journey and for the people I have worked with over the years – colleagues, healthcare professionals, and partners across the region. What has remained constant is a shared commitment to patients and to making a meaningful difference in people’s lives.
Early in my career, patient interactions left a lasting impression on me and shaped how I think about responsibility in healthcare. That perspective continues to guide how I work today and how I support teams, always remembering that behind every therapy or policy discussion is a person, a family, and a wider community.
That sense of purpose is what continues to motivate the teams I work with every day and me.
