JMI, Apollo partner to open clinic in Dhaka

JMI Hospital Requisite Manufacturing Ltd, a leading producer of medical apparatuses in Bangladesh, has partnered with India's Apollo Health and Lifestyle Ltd to launch a multi-specially clinic in the country.

The clinic will be managed by JMI Specialized Hospital Ltd, a new subsidiary of JMI Hospital with authorised and paid-up capital of Tk 50 crore and Tk 20 crore respectively.

On behalf of its parent company, JMI Specialized signed the related licensing agreement with Apollo Health on Tuesday, the company said in a filing to the Dhaka Stock Exchange yesterday.

And while the announcement came early in the day, JMI Hospital saw its share value erode 2.34 percent to Tk 75 per unit by the end of the trading session.

The clinic will be located in Dhanmondi with JMI funding the entire project, according to its Company Secretary Safiqur Rahaman.

Meanwhile, the Indian retail healthcare provider will extend technical support so that people in Bangladesh can avail the same solutions available at Apollo clinics in the neighbouring nation, he added.

The agreement was signed by Md Abdur Razzaq, chairman of JMI Specialized Hospital, and Tarun Gulati, head of franchise business at Apollo Health, at the Hotel Pan Pacific Sonargaon in Dhaka on Tuesday.

Apollo Health is a subsidiary of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd, which has a network of 75 hospitals and 350 clinics.

The main objective of this investment is to ensure quality healthcare at a fair price so that people in the country can receive world-class healthcare without going abroad, Razzaq said.

Once operational, the clinic will be able to handle more than one million patients annually, he added.

Razzaq also informed that they plan to introduce more of these clinics in the country under their partnership with Apollo Health.

Echoing the same, Gulati said they will ensure state-of-the-art diagnostic, consultation and health check facilities at the clinic while gradually expanding their business with JMI Hospital.

JMI Group Chairman Md Jabed Iqbal Pathan and CEO Tamjeed Alam also spoke at the signing ceremony.

Sales of JMI Hospital rose to Tk 185 crore in fiscal 2022-23 while it was Tk 180 crore the previous year.

However, the company's profit fell 7 percent year-on-year to Tk 30 crore, as per its financial reports.

JMI Hospital's retained earnings added with its reserves and surplus amounts to about Tk 156 crore at present, the data showed. The company was listed with the country's stock exchanges in 2022.