Aetna Appoints Hisham Radwan as GM of Operations in the Middle East and Africa [Health & Beauty Close – Up]

Aetna, a global diversified health care benefits company, announced that Hisham Radwan, has been named general manager of the Middle East and Africa region for its international operations.

In his new role, Radwan is responsible for expanding the company's international business in the region, the Company noted in a release.

In the Middle East and Africa, Aetna said that it offers individual and group health care benefits for expatriates, health management services for employers and governments, and global health benefit plans for local nationals through alliances with local insurance firms.

Radwan is based in Aetna'sDubai offices. He joins the company from Bupa Arabia for Cooperative Insurance in Riyadh, where he served as chief commercial officer, responsible for the company's commercial strategy for health insurance and services.

"We're pleased that Hisham will be leading our dynamic team in the Middle East and Africa, which is an important growth area for Aetna," said Sandip Patel, head of Aetna International. "With his deep industry knowledge and lifelong experience in the region, his oversight will provide an even greater focus to expanding our health care solutions business with government and corporate clients in the area."

A native of Egypt, Radwan has a strong track record of driving profitable growth and maximizing business efficiencies in the health care benefits industry. For the last 20 years, he has worked for the Nazer Group in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where he launched Bupa Middle East, the forerunner to Bupa Arabia. At Bupa Middle East, Radwan also managed corporate sales for its products and services in Saudi Arabia and served as sales and marketing director.

In February, Aetna was named "Health Insurer of the Year" for its health care benefits offerings in the Middle East by MENA Insurance Review, a publication covering the insurance sector in the Middle East and North Africa.

Aetna has had offices in Dubai for more than 10 years, where the company employs about 100 people. In 2012, Aetna established a multi- lingual call center offering French and Arabic to serve a selection of clients from the Middle East region.

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