Siemens Healthineers (www.Siemens-Healthineers.com), one of the world’s leading medical technology companies, announced the appointment of Vivek Kanade as the new Head for the company’s business/operations in the Middle East and Africa (MEA). The appointment, effective 4 December 2023, follows the company’s decision to unite its operations across the Middle East and the African continent with the aim to better serve the diverse needs of healthcare providers and communities.

Kanade is a Siemens veteran bringing more than thirty years of experience in the company from across different geographies and functions. In his previous role, Kanade held the position of Head of Strategy for the company’s expansive Asia Pacific Japan region, prior to which Kanade was the Head at Siemens Healthineers for India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and the Maldives. During this time, he was also Co-Chair at NatHealth in India, actively advising the Indian medical technology industry.

Commenting on the appointment, Vivek Kanade said: “As we strengthen our role as a trusted healthcare partner in this diverse growth region, this structural consolidation enables us to pool our strengths in following our core objectives, which include enhancing Access to Care and paving the way for better healthcare infrastructures in our markets. I am humbled and excited to start this new position, and look forward to uniting our strengths across the new zone and creating a positive difference in the lives of millions of patients across the Middle East and Africa.”

In his current capacity, Kanade has a vision to create an even bigger impact on patient’s lives, increasing patient touchpoints and leveraging the diverse opportunities in economically challenging growth markets of Africa and the Middle East.

Part of this vision and a strong focus area will be Access to Care, a Siemens Healthineers initiative structured around providing healthcare to everybody, everywhere. The initiative entails improvement of healthcare infrastructure, tackling the shortage of qualified staff and availability of healthcare provision for rural and underserved communities to making a lasting impact where it is needed the most.

“We aspire to create better outcomes and experiences for patients, no matter where they live by accelerating global development, building strategic partnerships, fighting the most threatening diseases, and rethinking the value chain,” added Kanade. “Specifically, we’re focusing on projects that are first and foremost scalable and fit our strategy while making an impact on local communities, by untapping new markets, capacity building and ensuring community reach.”