Dubai, UAE. 8 November — Her Excellency Sarah Al Amiri, Minister of State for Public Education and Advanced Technology, today attended the launch of Illumina’s new, state-of-the-art Solutions Center in Dubai. She attended the opening ceremony alongside several UAE government officials, who spoke about the country’s vision for industries of the future as well as for genomics and personalized medicine. 
The launch of the new center is in line with the Make it in the Emirates campaign and the recently announced Technology Transformation Program, which aim to draw international investors, industrialists and innovators to set up operations in the UAE.
Her Excellency delivered a keynote address, along with His Excellency Dr Amin Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary of the Health Regulation Sector, Ministry of Health and Prevention, Dr Marwan Al Mulla, CEO of Health Sector Regulation at Dubai Health Authority, Dr Asma Ibrahim Al Mannaei, Executive Director, Research and Innovation Center, Abu Dhabi Department of Health, and Dr Ashish Koshy, CEO of G42 Healthcare. Susan Tousi, Chief Commercial Officer, Illumina also spoke about how genomic technology is powering better predictive care, diagnoses, and precision therapeutics around the world.
The opening ceremony drew the attendance of7 Tariq Al Hashmi, Head of Technology Adoption at Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, Dr. Abdulla Al Khayat, CEO of Al Jalila Children’s Hospital, Kinjal Zaveri, CEO One Health at Purehealth, Ms. Youmna Ghaziri, Rare Diseases Activist & Co-Founder of Ana Fareed Organization for Rare Diseases Awareness, and several high profile personnel from within the health sector.
Addressing VIPs and guests at the ceremony, Her Excellency Sarah Al Amiri said: “The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology considers biotech, pharmaceuticals, and medical equipment as priority industries that have a vital role in enhancing the country’s economic diversification over the next 50 years. Consequently, we are investing heavily in supporting global companies like Illumina – who are pioneers in their fields – to launch operations in the UAE.
“As an emerging global hub for science, technology and industry, the UAE is the ideal base for companies like Illumina to continue innovating and scaling impactful projects. Here, we have built a business and industrial ecosystem that embraces new technologies and 4IR applications. This open approach to positive change has transformed our industrial sector into an environment that enables companies to apply technologies and thrive.” 
She added: “Illumnia’s new Solutions Center is a welcome addition to the UAE’s health sector, which we have identified as a priority industry. The ministry is keen on partnering with global companies like Illumina who wish to expand to key global markets using the UAE as a base. As well as benefitting from the country’s various competitive advantages, companies and investors can leverage the UAE’s world-class sci-tech and R&D ecosystem, which aims to pave the way for industries of the future, such as genomics. We are committed to supporting our partners to adopt advanced technologies in their operations to help increase productivity and efficiency. We wish Illumnia every success and look forward to supporting the company in its mission to enhance healthcare in the region.”