• KSA recently announced a minimum wage for private practice dentists and allocated USD 36.8 billion to show its commitment to enhancing its healthcare space

Middle East: Eon Dental, a leading dental technology company that specializes in the design and production of unique and patient-friendly clear aligners, has observed increases in the Middle East’s oral health service offering. The Jordan-based company credits the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) as key contributors to the region’s enhanced dental health infrastructure, and its upward trajectory.

The UAE’s commitment to the overall health of its citizens and expatriates has been supported by world-class infrastructure and aligned policies that provide the highest standard of healthcare. Oral hygiene, in particular, has been promoted on a larger scale over the past decade-plus with the country extending dental healthcare via several initiatives with support from the Ministry of Health (MOH). With eight major dentistry universities, over 200 oral health companies, and around 50,000 practicing dentists, the UAE has become a dental care hub in the MENA region[1].

KSA has also made significant strides in recent years to improve its dental services and infrastructure with the country’s government allocating 14.4% of its 2022 budget, equating to USD 36.8 billion, to enhance healthcare and social development; this was planned to be their third largest spending behind education and military.[2] An increasing prevalence of oral diseases, a growing demand for minimally invasive procedures, and a rise in the number of dentists in the lead-up to Vision 2030 are all major factors contributing to the country’s growth, and today, KSA accounts for 60% of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries’ healthcare expenditures.

As part of KSA’s ongoing efforts to elevate its dental industry, the government of Saudi Arabia announced a minimum wage of SAR 7,000 (roughly USD 1,860) for dentists working in private practice, earlier this year. This announcement aligns with KSA’s Saudisation program that kicked off last October. It aims to reserve 60% of jobs in private dental clinics for Saudi nationals, create more jobs for them, and grow their participation in the labor market. This revamped healthcare regulation is expected to create approximately 8,500 jobs for Saudi nationals and enhance the overall infrastructure of KSA’s dental sector[3].

Qais Sabri, Co-Founder, and CEO of Eon Dental commented, “​​The UAE and KSA are two prime examples of countries with pioneering visions. They have both put their best foot forward to overcome challenges to serve their citizens and expatriate communities, and as a result, they are leading the charge in reshaping MENA’s dental sector for the better and propelling its growth. We look forward to contributing to the region’s improved oral health by continuing to serve patients with our patented technology, well-experienced staff, and industry expertise.”

With both the UAE and KSA making immense progress in advancing their respective dental healthcare infrastructure, Eon Dental aims to add to each country’s future growth. The company has achieved over a decade of success to cement itself not only as a key player in the Middle East but globally. Eon’s workforce, which is scattered across four countries, serves MENA, Asia, Europe, and the US. They recently expanded their capacity and have additional expansion plans in the pipeline to continue catering to the wider region, and beyond.

About Eon Dental

Eon Dental is a full-service clear aligner partner offering premium white-label solutions for customers worldwide with high-quality clinical and treatment setup services, agile clear aligner manufacturing, and top-drawer clinician-centric software. Additionally, Eon is an established leader of clear aligners in the MENA region under the Eon Aligner brand.

[1] https://snoclinics.com/uae-is-all-smiles-for-promoting-dental-health/

[2] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/ksa-medical-devices-market-trends-size-research-2022-cagr-kushwaha?trk=pulse-article_more-articles_related-content-card

[3] https://www.dental-tribune.com/news/new-minimum-wage-for-saudi-dentists-from-april/