DUBAI: The Gulf is moving from importing medical innovation to shaping it, according to Baptiste de Clarens, general manager of vaccines for the Greater Gulf at Sanofi.
Speaking to Arab News on the sidelines of the Future Health Summit in Abu Dhabi, de Clarens said the French drugmaker’s role in the region has changed after decades of presence anchored by its logistics hub in Dubai, which delivers more than 22 million packs of medicines a year across regional markets.
“Today, however, we are no longer just importing global science; we are co-creating the future of healthcare with local partners,” he said. That work is expected to support more than 35 new regional launches by 2030.
Building local capacity
In Saudi Arabia, Sanofi is transferring technology to manufacture insulin locally, supporting Vision 2030’s goal of pharmaceutical self-sufficiency. It is also partnering with NoorDx and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology to localize diagnostic testing for five rare lysosomal storage disorders.
In the UAE, the company says it runs the country’s most comprehensive clinical research network, with 26 studies across 32 sites and more than 230 patients.
Faster approvals, regional research
The UAE recently became the first country to approve two Sanofi therapies, Cenrifki for a form of progressive multiple sclerosis and rilzabrutinib for the blood disorder immune thrombocytopenia, through the company’s partnership with the Emirates Drug Establishment.
“The Gulf doesn’t wait for global innovation — it leads it,” de Clarens said.
Sanofi is also the first biopharmaceutical company to sign a genomics agreement with Khalifa University on asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, aimed at closing the gap left by the underrepresentation of Middle Eastern genetics in global research.
AI in everyday care
On artificial intelligence, de Clarens said the company prioritizes practical tools. Sanofi is working with the Saudi Health Holding Co. and Abu Dhabi’s Malaffi health information exchange to embed algorithms into electronic health records so that high-risk genetic patients are flagged early.
In rare diseases, where diagnosis can take up to a decade, its accelRare tool helps physicians generate a differential pre-diagnosis across more than 300 conditions within minutes, while language processing and geo-mapping of public social media signals help locate undiagnosed patients.
From reactive to predictive care
Gulf health systems are shifting from reactive care toward prevention, de Clarens said. Sanofi is running early screening programs for autoimmune Type 1 diabetes in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, identifying children and adults before acute symptoms appear.
On infectious diseases, its alliance with the Department of Health — Abu Dhabi aims to accelerate vaccine research and regional manufacturing preparedness.
“True health system resilience means catching signals before a crisis hits,” he said.