Bahrain is home to one of the most liberalised telecoms sectors in the Middle East. Although it is a relatively small market, the country is keen to leverage telecommunications to facilitate broader economic growth, with the third National Telecommunications Plan, issued in 2012 and running until end-2015, envisaging the industry as a key enabler of socioeconomic development. Data services havecontinued…
Home to the first modern hospital in the region, Bahrain has one of the oldest health care sectors in the Gulf. Sustained investment in the sector has seen outcomes improve considerably for the majority of the population, with life expectancy rising from 71 in 1983 to 77 in 2013 and infant mortality dropping from 21 per 1000 births in 1985 to five in 2013. The sector continues to see new investment…
With the first modern school in the Gulf set up in the country in 1919, and the first girls’ school opened in 1928, Bahrain has one of the longest histories of education in the region. Greater investment in the sector aims to improve quality across the board while matching graduates’ skills with the needs of the labour market. The nation’s public schools continue to perform well with the National…
Known in ancient times as Dilmun, the inspiration for the Garden of Eden, and more recently as Ard Million Nakhla, or the Land of a Million Date Palms, Bahrain has been welcoming visitors for centuries. In 2014 tourism receipts reached $1.4bn, accounting for 4.2% of the country’s GDP, and they are forecast to grow by 4.9% annually between 2015 and 2025. Under the Bahrain Tourism Strategy 2015-18,…
Bahrain is investing heavily in expanding its industrial sector, as the non-oil sector continues to drive growth in the kingdom. The oil and gas sector grew by 3% in 2014, while the non-hydrocarbons sectors expanded by 4.9%. In the first quarter of 2015, manufacturing was up 5.9% year-on-year. In June 2015 Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) announced it would be going ahead with a sixth production line, a $3.5bn…
Bahrain’s construction sector is booming, with the country using billions of dollars of Gulf Development Programme donations to remodel its airport and highway system, as well as provide tens of thousands of affordable new homes for its citizens. In 2014 year-on-year sector growth was 7.3%, and was only surpassed by the hotel and restaurant sector, and personal and social services. In the first quarter…
Bahrain’s transport sector is gearing up for expansion in both the short and medium term, with GCC funds being used to complete upgrades to the road network and airport facilities. The government is also investing in infrastructure improvements and new public transport initiatives. The Ministry of Works has invested $485m in road network upgrades, which include the remodeling of junctions, bridges…
Although the global drop in crude oil prices is a concern, the early adoption of economic diversification efforts has created positive growth trajectories in non-oil sectors in Bahrain, such as construction and transport. Hydrocarbons continue to form the bulk of government revenues in Bahrain, with oil and gas accounting for 24.1% of Bahrain’s GDP in 2014. Neighbouring Saudi Arabia remains…
For decades Bahrain has been home to one of the GCC’s most developed insurance sectors, with domestic and international firms taking advantage of the country’s robust yet accommodating regulatory structure to pursue business both locally and in rapidly emerging regional markets. Some 25 locally incorporated insurers operate in Bahrain, with a further 22 locally incorporated firms restricted to…
As a pioneer in Islamic finance regulations and the home of some of the most important standard- setting institutions in the global sharia-compliant arena, Bahrain is at the forefront of the international Islamic financial services industry. In 2001 Bahrain became the first country in the world to implement regulations specific to Islamic banking. Since then the Central Bank of Bahrain’s rulebook…
