Dr. Ibrahim Al-Omar, Deputy Minister of Health for Laboratories and Blood Banks, confirmed that the establishment of the Kingdom’s first national blood plasma derivatives plant, in partnership with the Public Investment Fund, will have significant pharmaceutical and economic benefits for the health sector and will save 30 % of the cost importing blood products, noting that the project is one of the most important pharmaceutical initiatives and represents a qualitative leap in health services in the Kingdom.

In a press statement, Dr. Al-Omar explained that the project aims to produce derivatives from local blood sources and to obtain safe and sound blood of guaranteed origin, describing the plasma derivatives plant as a vital and strategic project, where plasma derivatives—which are considered medications for patients—will be manufactured so that they will no longer need to be imported from abroad in the future but will instead be produced from local blood supplies.

He noted that the number of blood products ranges from 7 to 9, depending on need, and that all of them are used to treat certain diseases, pointing out that blood products are currently imported from abroad in the form of medications, including plasma and clotting factors, and that this project will ensure the availability of these medications by utilizing blood from domestic donors. He noted that medications made from blood products are very expensive, with the Kingdom importing blood products worth 332 million riyals annually.