Dubai, May 22 (IANS/WAM): Job opportunities in the healthcare sector in the Middle East and North Africa region are expanding at the rate of 14 percent per year, a report said.

Support occupations in the sector worldwide will expand by over 34 percent till 2020, said the report on the growing demand for medical recruits, prepared by the Saudi German Hospital-Dubai.

It said this robust growth was very positive news on several fronts -- for the UAE's economy, health sector, individual hospitals and supporting institutions.

The news will also be warmly applauded by graduates, students and professionals in the health fraternity, since it exponentially multiplies their employment options, it said.

One reason for the expansion in health care jobs was that the industry was collectively upgrading its facilities and expertise to world-class standards.

It is envisaged that at this pace of growth, UAE institutions will become an extremely desirable source of knowledge, where professionals from elsewhere come to learn the latest and best practices before disseminating it back in Europe and the US.

The Saudi German Hospitals Group has been a leading health care provider in the Middle East since starting its operations in 1988.

Currently, the group has five operating hospitals - four in Jeddah, Aseer, Riyadh and Madinah in Saudi Arabia and one in Sana'a, Yemen.

Other hospital projects are in different stages of progress in Hail in Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Cairo, and Addis Ababa in Ethiopia.