Said Darwazah, chief executive of the Jordan-based drug company Hikma Pharmaceuticals announced to the press that his company is planning on acquiring between $500 and $600 million in companies in the coming year in order to consolidate its place as the region’s number one business in this sector.
Hikma is a quickly growing multinational manufacturer of drugs which, although a leading company in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region has yet to tap into markets in Morocco and Syria in the Arab world, and Turkey and beyond in the non-Arab world. Hikma does have a foothold in the Gulf States in Saudi Arabia, but is looking to enlarge that market as well.
Darwazah explained that Hikma’s sales are ahead of all other regional manufacturers in the MENA, and that their growth in the MENA is by far exceeding the growth of sales in the more mature markets where it also deals.
That's why we are concentrating on growing the business more and more in the region with its young population and changing health patterns. Although Hikma has robust operations in the U.S. and Western Europe, MENA is still the crown jewel of the business," he said.