New law to accelarate health center projects

ANKARA - Reuters

The health complexes to be established with the private and public partnership model are to attract more foreign and local investors, the health sector players says.

The bill behind the partnership of the private and public sectors (PPP), which was enacted Feb. 21, will accelerate the establishment of the integrated health campuses, sector players have said.

The PPP is a model to allow the private sector to construct and manage integrated health campuses (city hospitals) that will be rented by the public sector for 25 years and was recently adopted by Parliament. Health sector professionals said the process of the projects would accelerate due to this new law, whereas the gap in legislation had caused a slow down in the projects in regards to disturbing foreign investors.

This new regulation, which will have a positive impact on the sector will conduct foreign investors to increase their investment amount, said Tunç Duygun, PPP coordinator of YDA İnşaat who is partnered with Italian Per Le Infrastrutture in projects in Kayseri, Mersin, Manisa and Konya-Karatay.

Duygun stated that they would begin construction of a health campus with a capacity of 1,584 beds in the central province of Kayseri after they obtained approval from the Ministry of Health. They aim to complete the projects in 36 months.

However, there are three campuses already under construction, six in the contract phase, seven in the final proposal phase and two campuses that have preliminary qualification. The ongoing projects have a combined capacity of 28,000 beds.

New law will up investments to $20 bln

The new regulation will elevate the sector to $20 billion euros in two years by attracting foreign investments, a sector player said. “Both local and foreign investors will take active part in the PPP in the health sector through this new regulation. The goal for a capacity of 40,000 beds will create an investment worth between $15 and $20 billion in the next two years,” he said.

The new law authorizes the cabinet to make decisions about the contracts that promise investments and services worth at least $500 million Turkish Liras, foreign financing and transfer of financial obligations law paves the way for state guarantee for the projects.