GCC Case Studies

Regulatory & market entry

Registration and in-region entry across the six GCC markets senior-led, end-to-end

Accelerated Registration

Registration accelerated through Saudi Arabia’s priority-review pathway

Challenge

When Saudi Arabia introduced new priority-review pathways, a company needed to know which products could qualify and how to use the route to speed market entry.

approach

Screened the portfolio against the new criteria, built the strategy and dossiers, and managed SFDA submissions to win approvals in months, not the standard timeline.

Regulatory strategy

UAE market entry accelerated by initiating registration based on US FDA approval while EMA review continued in parallel

Challenge

A product was US FDA-approved but awaiting EMA sign-off; with commercial supply from Europe, waiting would have delayed local launch.

approach

Filed the local dossier on the strength of the US approval and ran registration in parallel with the EU process, completing the remaining requirements once EMA approval landed saving months to market.

Lifecycle portfolio operations

3,000+ licence and artwork transfers/changes and 30+ launches delivered while maintaining supply continuity

Challenge

A major global portfolio integration required regulatory transfer of a very large product range across multiple markets, without disrupting supply or compliance.

approach

Led the multi-country regulatory workstream, including licence transfers, variations and artwork changes across 3,000+ transfers and 30+ launches.

licence remediation & compliance

UAE portfolio of ~54 SKUs brought into full compliance in 12 months with zero supply disruption

Challenge

A multinational's UAE portfolio of ~54 SKUs carried pending renewals and lifecycle changes just as the authority began holding shipments for products with outdated licences.

approach

Built a structured remediation plan with renewals, licence and manufacturing-site transfers, packaging and variations run in parallel and negotiated shipment releases directly with the health authority to keep supply flowing.

Examples reflect work led by Veridian team members in prior roles at previous organisations

HEOR & Market Access

Value stories that earn reimbursement pricing, HTA, and formulary access across the GCC
Examples reflect work led by Veridian team members in prior roles at previous organisations

Access insights, strategy and planning

Access secured across GCC for first-of-its-kind advanced therapy (ATMP)

Challenge

A biotech bringing a high-cost advanced therapy (ATMP) to the GCC, where no funding route, pricing precedent, or reimbursement pathway was established for an entirely new treatment category.

approach

Conducted a market-access and approval-stage assessment across the markets, built a comprehensive payer–regulator–institution stakeholder map, and developed a prioritised, sequenced engagement and funding-pathway plan.

Pricing, access insights & planning

Access secured in GCC markets for a first-in-disease oral therapy

Challenge

A biotech launching the first approved oral therapy for a rare disease with no prior standard of care, and no local pricing or reimbursement precedent to build on.

approach

Payer value proposition, pricing and access-pathway mapping, and targeted stakeholder engagement planning to establish reimbursement in the absence of precedent.

market insights & access strategy

Payer & prescriber insight that reshaped a two-market access strategy

Challenge

A global pharma needed on-the-ground insight into how neurologists, pharmacists and payers viewed a competitive therapy, to guide access expansion.

approach

Primary research with neurologists, pharmacists, and ex-payers to inform actionable access, pricing, and advocacy recommendations.

Health technology assessment (HTA)

Earlier SFDA approval & premium price for a single-arm oncology therapy

Challenge

Specialty oncology medicine pursuing SFDA approval on the strength of a single-arm study, with health-economic models built for other jurisdictions and a strong competitor anticipated.

approach

Synthesised external-comparator evidence (historical and synthetic) to establish comparative efficacy for Saudi patients, built it into a partitioned-survival CEA model, and communicated it in plain language.

Examples reflect work led by Veridian team members in prior roles at previous organisations

Medical Affairs & Scientific Engagement

Regional clinical conviction medical strategy, evidence, and scientific exchange across the GCC

Advisory board

Advisory board that defined the role of a new respiratory therapy

Challenge

A global pharma needed regional specialists aligned on where a new respiratory therapy fits, with the local case for use not yet established.

approach

Convened and chaired an expert advisory board, built around patient data that demonstrated the unmet need and the patients most likely to benefit.

Real world evidence studies

Real-world evidence study generating local respiratory data

Challenge

Global trial data did not fully reflect regional patients and practice in this disease; local real-world evidence was needed to build prescriber and payer confidence.

approach

Designed and delivered a real-world evidence study capturing regional patient characteristics, treatment patterns and outcomes.

Medical education

Preceptorship programme that built prescriber confidence in a new oncology therapy

Challenge

Oncology teams needed hands-on experience in identifying eligible patients and using a new oncology therapy, including biomarker-led selection.

approach

Ran a structured preceptorship programme at centres of excellence, covering biomarker-led patient selection and treatment management.

Delphi consensus

Delphi consensus driving earlier, appropriate treatment in an autoimmune disease

Challenge

Regional care in this autoimmune disease lacked population-specific guidance, delaying the right treatment and better outcomes.

approach

Ran a Delphi consensus with regional and international experts and supported the resulting peer-reviewed publication on earlier treatment.

Examples reflect work led by Veridian team members in prior roles at previous organisations

Access in the GCC, de-risked

200+ years of combined team experience across multiple therapy areas. The cases here are a sample. Bring us your asset and the conversation goes straight to what’s relevant.
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Get GCC Access Insights

Practical thinking on registration, HTA, pricing and clinical adoption across the GCC, plus details of upcoming Veridian events.

Ajaz Rashid

Medical affairs & scientific communications

Over 30 years in medical affairs, scientific communications and clinical research in global, regional and local roles. Successful track record in leading people and teams to develop and deliver scientific narratives, programmes and content with demonstrable HCP impact across multiple therapeutic areas including respiratory, immunology, oncology, CV, metabolic, neurology and hepatology.

Dr. Rashmi Hegde

Medical affairs

30 years delivering 80+ Life Sciences product & vaccine regulatory approvals for launches across therapies and geographies. Expertise in Pharmacovigilance, Medical, Clinical, patient affairs, and medical governance. Optimized MA & MSL capabilities, focusing on executional excellence. Achieved 100% PV compliance across 33 global affiliates

Dr. Laura Jotimliansky

Medical affairs & clinical research

30+ years in pharma across multiple TAs and geographies. Internal Medicine and Clinical Pharmacology training with deep LATAM and Middle East focus. At GSK, led regional teams and built Oncology structure across Emerging Markets. Previously at BMS and Roche.

Dr. Elif Coskuncay

Medical affairs

25+ years spanning pharma, clinical practice, and strategic medical affairs at global, regional, and local levels. Therapeutic expertise in oncology, cardiovascular, metabolic, respiratory, rare diseases, and vaccines. Successfully launched life-saving therapies including immuno-oncology in emerging and developed markets.

Rafa Al Khalifa

Market access & stakeholder engagement

Healthcare strategy consultant specializing in specialty pharmacy, market access, patient support programs, health economics, quality, and compliance. UAE MOHAP-registered pharmacist. Led the first ACHC-accredited specialty pharmacy outside the US. FIP SAPS Executive Committee member; represented FIP at the World Health Assembly and COP29. Co-Founder of EcoRx UAE.

Dr. Claudia Soares

Rwe, heor & business intelligence

Physician with MSc/PhD in Epidemiology & Biostatistics and a Master’s in Business Intelligence (focused on AI in healthcare). Over 18 years of experience across academia, government, and the pharmaceutical industry in R&D, Health Outcomes, and Medical Affairs. Led global, regional, and local projects in clinical development, launch planning, epidemiology, health outcomes, real-world data (RWD), and evidence generation, with a strong track record of impact in emerging markets.

Dr. Ali AlHammad

Heor & market access

HEOR expert with strong background in market access, patient-reported outcomes, and medical research. Proven track record developing strategic brand plans for successful launches in Saudi Arabia. Deep understanding of the Saudi healthcare system, translating complex economic data into actionable insights for payers.

Safinaz Issa

Regulatory affairs & market access

Senior Regulatory, Government Affairs & Market Access Executive with 25+ years of leadership across Pfizer, GSK, Sanofi Genzyme, Novartis, Eisai, and Eli Lilly. Led 1,000+ filings and market access strategies across 40+ markets in MEA, Europe, and North America. Expertise spans regulatory strategy and intelligence, health authority engagement, compliance, lifecycle management, and complex product launches across rare diseases, neuroscience, oncology, and medical devices.

Dr. Razia Hussain

Director, Medical Affairs

Senior Medical Affairs and Clinical Research leader with 25+ years of international pharmaceutical experience across Oncology, Immunology, Cardiovascular, Respiratory, HIV, Hepatology, and Specialty Medicine. Led Medical Affairs teams in China and clinical research operations globally, delivering registration studies, evidence generation, pre-launch readiness, and RWE programmes. Developed medical excellence capabilities adopted as global best practices, led a major cardiovascular RWE study in the Middle East, and established a regional pharmacovigilance hub for Africa. Strong track record in medical strategy, cross-functional leadership, stakeholder engagement, and building high-performing teams.

Fayaz Aziz

Managing Director, HTA/HEOR and Market Access

Senior health economics, market access, and medical affairs leader with 25+ years of international experience spanning industry, government, academia, and consultancy across R&D, EU, Emerging Markets, and the Middle East. Led HEOR strategy and medical excellence across 30+ markets at GSK, delivered HTA submissions to NICE and SMC at Pfizer UK, and founded a global HEOR Academy that trained 2,000+ professionals. 15+ years in the GCC, with early career foundations as a public health scientist at the England Department of Health, health policy training at LSE, and doctoral research at LSHTM on AI governance in HTA decision-making.