UAE launches new platform Bayan as 'single source of truth' for health data
For several years, UAE health officials struggled with the problem of having critical data scattered across hospitals, clinics, and government entities, making it difficult to see the full picture of the nation's health. To counter that, a new digital platform has been launched. Bayan will pull together the country's health data, ranging from disease rates and doctor licences to hospital beds and medical graduates, into one single dashboard. Launched at the World Health Expo (WHX) by the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), it is already reshaping how leaders are planning for the future. An expert described it as a “single source of truth” for the country as it connects historical and live data from public and private healthcare providers, government entities and even non-health sectors. Dr. Alya Zaid Harbi, Director of the Statistics and Research Center at MoHAP described Bayan as a national unifier. "It is a big data platform and enterprise data warehouse where we connect all the data — historical and live — into one platform," she explained. "It comes from different sources: electronic medical records, national health surveys as well as non-health sectors like education and road traffic. Even education data like the number of students studying medicine or nursing is included.”Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels. She was speaking to Khaleej Times on the sidelines of the WHX where she gave a live demonstration of the system. Smarter decision making The system is not just about storing information but about turning that information into action. "It gives the big picture of UAE population health," Dr. Alya said. "It helps in planning, decision making, and putting strategy. We can prioritise our needs based on evidence." Using Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping, officials can spot disease clusters, track workforce shortages and project future demands. The platform includes more than 300 health indicators and over 45 interactive dashboards covering areas such as birth and death statistics, vaccinations, hospital beds, workforce distribution, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and global competitiveness rankings. “Sometimes we can see the trend and projections — what will happen in 2030, for example,” she said. “Maybe there are specific diseases in one area. It will show us if we need more workforce there.” Years of workAccording to Dr. Alya, building Bayan took over three years, not just because of the volume of data, but because of the rigorous work behind it. "It has so many background things," she said. "We're not only taking data as integration. There are business rules for data, ensuring data quality and validation." The platform pulls historical records from as early as 2005 alongside live updates. During the interview, she demonstrated a dashboard tracking live birth counts. "Yesterday, we increased by around 300 babies,” she said. “The system is interactive," she explained, adding, "If I drill it down to Abu Dhabi, it gives me the information." Disease registryBayan also houses national disease registries for cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and disability. According to Dr. Alya, this will help the country keep track of any worrisome trends. The system’s scope also extends to doctors and nurses. The platform tracks medical students, their universities, and graduation rates — feeding into workforce projections. "If we want the projection for 2030 we can see how many students are studying surgery for example and from which university,” she said.From hospitals to health systems: How connected care will redefine GCC healthcare by 2026Organ in a chip, AI retina scanner: 5 health tech making UAE residents' lives easierMonths to minutes: How AI is helping Abu Dhabi understand residents' needs
For several years, UAE health officials struggled with the problem of having critical data scattered across hospitals, clinics, and government entities, making it difficult to see the full picture of the nation's health. To counter that, a new digital platform has been launched.
Bayan will pull together the country's health data, ranging from disease rates and doctor licences to hospital beds and medical graduates, into one single dashboard. Launched at the World Health Expo (WHX) by the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), it is already reshaping how leaders are planning for the future. An expert described it as a “single source of truth” for the country as it connects historical and live data from public and private healthcare providers, government entities and even non-health sectors.
Dr. Alya Zaid Harbi, Director of the Statistics and Research Center at MoHAP described Bayan as a national unifier. "It is a big data platform and enterprise data warehouse where we connect all the data — historical and live — into one platform," she explained. "It comes from different sources: electronic medical records, national health surveys as well as non-health sectors like education and road traffic. Even education data like the number of students studying medicine or nursing is included.”
Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.
She was speaking to Khaleej Times on the sidelines of the WHX where she gave a live demonstration of the system.
Smarter decision making
The system is not just about storing information but about turning that information into action. "It gives the big picture of UAE population health," Dr. Alya said. "It helps in planning, decision making, and putting strategy. We can prioritise our needs based on evidence."
Using Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping, officials can spot disease clusters, track workforce shortages and project future demands. The platform includes more than 300 health indicators and over 45 interactive dashboards covering areas such as birth and death statistics, vaccinations, hospital beds, workforce distribution, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and global competitiveness rankings.
“Sometimes we can see the trend and projections — what will happen in 2030, for example,” she said. “Maybe there are specific diseases in one area. It will show us if we need more workforce there.”
Years of work
According to Dr. Alya, building Bayan took over three years, not just because of the volume of data, but because of the rigorous work behind it.
"It has so many background things," she said. "We're not only taking data as integration. There are business rules for data, ensuring data quality and validation."
The platform pulls historical records from as early as 2005 alongside live updates. During the interview, she demonstrated a dashboard tracking live birth counts. "Yesterday, we increased by around 300 babies,” she said.
“The system is interactive," she explained, adding, "If I drill it down to Abu Dhabi, it gives me the information."
Disease registry
Bayan also houses national disease registries for cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and disability. According to Dr. Alya, this will help the country keep track of any worrisome trends. The system’s scope also extends to doctors and nurses.
The platform tracks medical students, their universities, and graduation rates — feeding into workforce projections. "If we want the projection for 2030 we can see how many students are studying surgery for example and from which university,” she said.
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