"So far, our country has trained around 3,000 Saudi physicians, including the world renowned surgeon and current Health Minister Dr. Adbullah Al-Rabeeah. At present, we have 700 physicians receiving their training at Canadian health-care institutions,” said Canadian Minister for International Trade Peter Van Loan, who  began a three-day official visit to the Kingdom on Monday.

Van Loan made the comments at a press conference on Tuesday following the signing of a memorandum of understanding in health care between the two countries.

The agreement was signed by Loan and Al-Rabeeah at the Ministry of Health in Riyadh.

"Though cooperation between the two countries in health care dates back to three decades, this MOU will create new opportunities to enhance and increase cooperation in the health and medical fields and enable the Kingdom to benefit from Canada, which is recognized as having one of the best health-care system in the world," Loan said.

According to Al-Rabeeah, the MOU will allow both countries to share medical expertise and exchange physicians and health-care professionals. It will also offer good opportunities for Saudi physicians and health-care personnel to receive further training in their fields in Canada, and enable the Kingdom to benefit from Canadian expertise in constructing model health-care facilities.

On Wednesday, Loan will end his visit by meeting Saudi businessmen at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry.