CAIRO (Realist English). Egyptian authorities are seeking to revive the country’s historical legacy as a centre of medical tourism in order to gain a larger share of the global market.
According to Grand View Research, this market was valued at approximately $34 billion last year, with Turkey and the UAE holding leading positions in the region.
The Egyptian government believes that the country’s geographical position at the crossroads of three continents, as well as a thriving hospitality sector that has withstood the most serious consequences of recent Middle East conflicts, will support this strategy.
Last month, at the Grand Egyptian Museum, authorities presented an online platform designed to help foreign patients gain more convenient access to medical services.
Luxor: The Core of the Strategy
At the centre of all this is the Egyptian Healthcare Authority (EHA). This independent public institution manages almost 400 medical facilities across the country, including hospitals, laboratories, and clinics, and is developing a network of private medical services in such prestigious locations as Aswan, the Red Sea coast, and Luxor.
In Luxor — a city known for the Karnak Temple and the Valley of the Kings with Tutankhamun’s tomb — six hospitals with hotel-style rooms offer specialised equipment for obstetrics, paediatrics, and radiology.
EHA Chairman Ahmed Sobky said in an interview that Egypt is “capable of combining medicine with traditional tourism,” and that “international patients can receive advanced medical care while enjoying tourist, cultural, and entertainment attractions.”
The history that Egyptian authorities hope to revive dates back to the 19th century. Travel writer Lucy Duff Gordon was one of the Europeans who lived in Luxor for a long time.
The city’s dry air — warm even in winter — was recommended for alleviating many diseases. The British travel agency Thomas Cook even opened a hospital in the city for foreigners and local residents.
Data and Growth
According to EHA, in 2025 its facilities received 13,370 foreign patients — more than five times the 2,075 people in 2022 — attracting patients from approximately 124 countries: Arab, African, Asian, European, and American.
Sobky said EHA plans to add 5,000 medical facilities over the next six years, with public-private partnerships playing an important role. The expansion will cover the most in-demand areas: cardiovascular surgery, bariatric and plastic surgery, as well as IVF and advanced dentistry.
Currently, revenues from medical visits remain relatively low, but Sobky expects them to more than double this year — to $6 million, against $3.8 million in 2025; as of July, almost 8,000 foreign patients had been registered. In August, EHA reported that its medical tourism revenues grew by 37% year-on-year, exceeding the $10 million mark, with around 42,000 tourists treated.
Competitive Landscape: Turkey and the UAE Ahead
Turkey currently leads the regional medical tourism ranking in terms of volume and scale, while the UAE leads in high-end service and luxury.
Co-founder of the London-based global medical tourism company WeCure, Emre Atcheeken, believes Egypt “cannot simply copy” their models. “It must create a unique, clearly defined niche that gives international patients a real reason to change destination. Entering established patient flows is the real battle,” he said.
Risks and Concerns
Although medical tourism can provide lower costs and faster access to services, there are also disadvantages for foreign patients.
The World Health Organization and the World Medical Association warn that if problems arise, the savings can quickly disappear, and liability issues can become complicated.
There are also concerns within Egypt. Although the WHO states that Egypt has made significant progress in improving healthcare for its population of more than 108 million people, inequality of access remains a problem.
The situation could worsen if leading surgeons, specialists, and nurses are poached uncontrollably from the public sector, forcing the population to rely on understaffed state facilities.
EHA’s broader mission is to modernise state medical facilities. In 2024, Egypt passed a law allowing the private sector to build, manage, operate, and develop state medical facilities.
“Whether medical tourism is harmful or beneficial for domestic healthcare ultimately depends on government regulation,” said Atcheeken. “Smart markets use regulatory levers or tax structures to channel private international revenues back into modernising public medicine, ensuring that foreign capital serves to raise overall health standards in the country.”
