Ayala expands healthcare portfolio

MANILA, Philippines – Conglomerate Ayala Corp. is seeking to expand its foothold in healthcare and education and hopes to seal more deals this year.

Ayala group head for Corporate Strategy and Development Paolo Borromeo said the conglomerate wants to increase investments in human capital through healthcare and education.

“We are looking for investments in healthcare and education. There are a number of opportunities that we are evaluating in (the two sectors),” Borromeo said.

Borromeo declined to confirm whether there are ongoing talks with some parties but said the group hopes to seal some deals soon.

“Hopefully, (we can do it soon). Possibly, we’d like to do that this year,” Borromeo said.

He said social infrastructure is very important for the group.

“People tend to neglect social infrastructure and are focused on hard infrastructure but (social infrastructure) is equally important,” he said.

The country’s oldest conglomerate has its own line of community-based clinics, FamilyDoc, which Ayala put up through its health-related subsidiary, Ayala Healthcare Holdings.

The group has two community-based clinics, in Las Piñas and in Imus, which started in December.

The so-called community-based clinics, with a size of around 100 square meters, have five staff at any given time including one doctor and two nurses.

With a consultation fee of P350 and clinic hours from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., the clinic is equipped with an X-ray, an ultrasound as well as first-aid response equipment.

It is seen complementing the government-run health centers and other community-based clinics.

Depending on the success of the first two pilot clinics, Ayala may put up more of these community-based clinics.

In July last year, Ayala Corp. also announced its venture in healthcare through the acquisition of a 50 percent stake in drugstore chain Generika Group.

Its wholly owned subsidiary Ayala Healthcare Holdings signed the agreement with the family of co-founder Julien Bello.

Generika is among the pioneers in the retail distribution of quality generic medicines in the country with over 500 stores nationwide. Bello and businessman Teodoro Ferrer co-founded the drugstore chain.

Established in 2003, Generika promotes the use of generic drugs in the country. Its first outlet opened in May 2004 in Montillano, Muntinlupa.

In the area of education, Ayala, in partnership with the Pearson Group, has APEC Schools, which is a low-cost high school chain.