The Abu Dhabi company Al Falah Holding has started work on a Dh500 million medical mall in Khalifa City A.

The company, with interests in construction, transport, health care, education and property, said that the nine-storey building is the first vertical medical mall project to be built in the region and includes space for a hospital, health clinics, dental practices, health insurance companies, sports and wellness stores, medical laboratories and a gym.

The building is expected to be completed by the middle of next year, with tenants moving in throughout the third quarter.

Al Hilal Bank has provided funding for its construction.

“We are very proud to announce the development of the medical mall project as a new concept in the healthcare industry,” said Zayed Falah, the chairman of Al Falah Holding. “This project will attract local and overseas potential partners in the healthcare industry … The know-how of reputable healthcare organisations, along with our long-established network in the region, will lead to the successful establishment of our new medical mall.”

Sultan Al Falah, the chief executive of Al Falah Holding, said the company’s intention was “to serve different tracks of medical services professionals” within one compound. He said that similar concepts exist in the United States and in Canada.

According to Meed, there are US$72 billion worth of healthcare projects in the pipeline across GCC states and $8.5bn has been spent on healthcare projects across the UAE over the past decade.

Just last week, Thumbay Group said that it is to build Dh600m worth of projects in Ajman.

The company said it would build a 300-bed hospital, a 60-space dental hospital and a rehabilitation centre, all at the Gulf Medical University campus in Ajman. It said the hospital would be the biggest private academic medical facility in the Middle East.

“With these projects, Thumbay Group will cement its position as the largest private academic healthcare provider in the region,” said Thumbay Moideen, its founder and president.

In Dubai, meanwhile, it is building a new headquarters and extending the outpatients’ department at an existing hospital.