“YouTube Health in Arabic will empower people in the broader MENA region to live their healthiest lives by bringing accurate and accessible information to their homes.” – Dr. Garth Graham, Director of YouTube Health for Google.

This statement framed the conversation for a roundtable discussion hosted in collaboration between Google, YouTube Health, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi (CCAD), and the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council on Thursday, November 6, 2025, at the CCAD. This high-level roundtable discussion titled “Launching YouTube Health U.A.E.: A New Era of Accessible Health Information” convened senior U.A.E. government officials and business executives from the healthcare and life sciences ecosystem to present YouTube Health U.A.E., a globally accredited digital health platform in Arabic.

“We have a moral obligation to provide accurate, quality, and accessible health information to the public, and it is the mission of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. This partnership with YouTube Health helps us further the goal of this mission.” Dr. Georges Pascal Haber, CEO of CCAD, comments during his opening remarks underscores the importance of healthcare providers, regulators, and life sciences experts to partner with and create content on YouTube Health U.A.E. in Arabic.

Dr. Garth Graham, Director of YouTube Health, and Dr. Asmaa Zerkdi, Partnership Manager EMEA for YouTube Health, delivered keynote remarks and a product demonstration highlighting the pivotal role YouTube Health plays in supporting culturally conscious health information in Arabic:

• Dr. Graham emphasized that YouTube Health’s strategic vision is to partner with prominent healthcare and life sciences stakeholders in the U.A.E. to foster a collaborative ecosystem of trusted health information.
   
• He highlighted the importance of this roundtable discussion to raise awareness among experts in the U.A.E. to join the platform and create content in Arabic in the U.A.E. to collectively shape the future of digital health accessibility across the MENA region.
   
• Dr. Zerkdi explained thatYouTube Health’s launch in the U.A.E. provides a digital health platform in Modern Standard Arabic and will be used as a launch pad to promote health equity across the broader MENA region.

Why This Matters:

• Ensuring that people have access to accurate, evidence-based health information in Arabic supports the U.A.E.’s broader vision of leveraging innovation through trusted digital platforms to improve public health.
   
• 7.5 million people in the U.A.E. accessed the YouTube platform in May 2025, and 20 million videos are uploaded to YouTube daily, 9.5 million of which are related to health information.
   
• Leveraging the U.A.E.’s globally respected health provisions and regulations, YouTube Health U.A.E. in Arabic will serve as a gateway for reaching the wider MENA region.
   
• Concepts of credibility and accessibility lay the foundation for the strategic framework and vision of YouTube Health through global partnerships with leading global institutions and accredited medical associations, and universities to empower the public to live their healthiest lives.
• The YouTube Health U.A.E. launch roundtable aligned senior government officials and private sector executives to secure buy-in and partnerships across the healthcare and life sciences ecosystem to expand the network of verified health information in Arabic.

High-level U.A.E. Government Participation:

The evening featured attendance from: 

• H.E. Dr. Fayeza Said Alyafei, Executive Director of Healthcare Quality Sector, Department of Health Abu Dhabi (DOH) 

The reception was also attended by Dr. Marwan Al Kaabi, CEO of Sheikh Shakhbout Medical City (SSMC).

Panel Discussion:

Dayle Carden, Senior Advisor for the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council, moderated a high-level panel exploring themes of public health accessibility, digital health compliance, combating misinformation, and public-private sector partnerships. Speakers included:

• Andy Pattison, Team Lead of Digital Channels, World Health Organization (WHO)
• Dr. Garth Graham, Director, YouTube Health, Google
• Dr. Asmaa Zerkdi, Partnership Manager EMEA YouTube, Google

Themes Explored:

• Prioritization of establishing partnerships with healthcare and life science stakeholders in the U.A.E. to provide a reliable digital health platform in Arabic, based in the U.A.E., to access the broader MENA region and promote health equity.
   
• Utilizing AI to support a localized Arabic-language digital health platform to bridge content gaps and address the unique format preferences of Arabic-speaking audiences.
   
• ​Because health is cultural, global, scalable information—such as on diabetes management—must be complemented by regionally relevant content in Arabic and reflect local cultures, diets, and family dynamics to foster trust and sustained engagement.
   
• ​Combating misinformation by partnering with accredited medical institutions and healthcare regulators to harmonize content safety standards for health information.
   
• Establishing partnerships cross-sectorally in the U.A.E. between government regulators, policy makers, medical organizations and associations, and digital innovators to localize a health content creation moderation framework. 
   
• Elevating content uploaded by accredited healthcare providers, medical universities and associations, and health regulators to ensure content credibility.
   
• Established partnerships with global health authorities, such as the WHO, ensure unified digital health communication standards and promote initiatives like FIDES, which share content from physicians and healthcare providers to help users navigate reliable, evidence-based information.
   
• Underscoring thatthe content uploaded is informative and not prescriptive, and that the patient-physician relationship is not undermined.

For more information about the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council’s healthcare and life sciences programming and this event, please contact Mr. Adam Karadsheh at akaradsheh@usuaebusiness.org.