BAHRAIN, 9 April 2008 — Sheikh Muhammad ibn Essa Al-Khalifa, chief executive of the Economic Development Board of Bahrain (EDB) has stressed the role of both local and foreign investors in the economic development of Bahrain.

In an interview with Arab News on Sunday, Sheikh Al-Khalifa said, “The economic policy of the Kingdom of Bahrain is not to attract foreign investors only but it is also to encourage all investors, whether Bahraini, Gulf or foreign. We have been following a policy of openness and transparency in economic and investment matters. For instance, the registration of a new company can be completed in one or two days provided that all the papers are complete. This is a departure from the past when the formalities to start an establishment took a long period to complete.”

Al-Khlifa said the economic policies of the country were published well in advance so that investors could make sure that their investments would be safe and profitable. For instance, Al-Khalifa cited the example of the government’s publishing of the pricing policy of gas. This would help the investors to form a clear picture of the energy situation for at least a given period.

The EDB is responsible for attracting investments to Bahrain. It focuses on various economic sectors in which the Kingdom offers significant strengths in line with local culture.

With regard to its broad outlook toward neighboring countries, Al-Khalifa said, “I believe that Bahrain is the first country in the Gulf to view any Gulf citizen as a Bahraini citizen in economic matters. This is based on a royal order, which provides a favorable investment environment for Bahraini citizens as well,” EDB’s chief executive said.

The EDB strives to enhance the capabilities, infrastructure and policies that are tied to Bahrain’s economic sectors and to the overall business environment, with the ultimate aim of attracting investment in these areas and thereby contributing to the Kingdom’s economic growth.

Speaking about the important upcoming developmental projects in Bahrain, Al-Khalifa said while there was an ongoing construction boom in the country what he was really concerned about was the manufacturing industries, which would provide plenty of employment opportunities to Bahrainis.

“We should have a comprehensive and balanced vision of progress. Our emphasis should not be on the services sector alone. Our aim is to achieve balanced growth in all sectors. Greater attention should be given to new areas of economic and industrial activities because they would guarantee a greater rate of success,” the EDB chief said.

He stressed the need for establishing industries to produce value-added products. The Bahrain Aluminum Co. aimed to increase its profit by manufacturing value added products. While the export of raw aluminum fetched only a small profit margin, manufacturing industries based on aluminum enhanced the profit by $100 to $500 per ton. The profit could increase to $1,000 per ton if the country started manufacturing and marketing automobile spare parts etc, he said.

Al-Khalifa identified the downstream industries, particularly in the aluminum and tourism sectors, as the major sources of employment for people in the Kingdom. “In these sectors we have huge projects coming and these projects will provide jobs for the greatest number of local people. We have been striving to bring down the unemployment rate from 15 percent to 5 percent.”

He said a special fund has been established with the aim of financing training and rehabilitation programs for unemployed youths.

Al-Khalifa was also optimistic about the availability of sufficient local manpower as the country’s population growth was 3 percent. There is also a large expatriate workforce in the country to support any economic expansion.

Speaking on the banking sector Al-Khalifa said there were more than 400 financial establishments registered under the Central Bank of Bahrain. “We expect vast development in the Takaful and Islamic banking sectors. We are planning to establish research centers to help formulate regulations to govern the Islamic banking.”

In recent years, Bahrain has rapidly become a global leader in Islamic finance, playing host to the largest concentration of Islamic financial institutions in the Middle East.

The central bank recently established a special fund to finance research, education and training in Islamic finance (the Waqf Fund); and is active in working with the industry and stakeholders in developing industry standards and the standardization of market practices.