HE Mr. Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, has recently announced that the Kingdom of Bahrain has completed the fourth trade policy review of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) held at the Organisation's headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
The Minister explained that the Kingdom has gained wide welcoming from WTO and member states following its presentation, over a three-day period, clarifying the most important procedures, legislations and government programmes that directly reflect on the development of the trade environment in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
The presentation was delivered with the participation of a delegation that included HE Ambassador Dr Yousef AbdulKarim Bucheeri, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Nations, and representatives of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, the Ministry of Finance and National Economy, the Central Bank of Bahrain, the National Bureau of Revenue and the Economic Development Board.
Mr. Al Zayani expressed pride in this achievement, which adds to the Kingdom's record of remarkable accomplishments, stating: "Bahrain, with its successes and ambitions, has today become a global model to be followed at all levels, and has proven its accuracy of the procedures, legislation and sound steps, thanks to the great support of the Kingdom's Wise Leadership and with the participation of all concerned parties in one spirit under Team Bahrain in overcoming many crises, especially the repercussions of the global pandemic. The Kingdom of Bahrain has charted a method to preserve its gains, and even aspire to achieve more for the sake of achievement further advancement."
In addition, Ms. Atalia Molokomi Netsrana, Head of the Commerce Policy Review Committee, praised the legislative developments and procedures achieved by the Kingdom of Bahrain since the previous assessment in 2014. She described the assessment result as very positive, given the great interaction, which can be described as clear and transparent, witnessed from the Bahraini side of the organisation and its members.
On the occasion, Minister Al Zayani expressed gratitude and appreciation to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, for their endless support, sound directives and ambitious visions to create a robust economy that is based on diversity and creativity, adding that this achievement is a motive to attain additional accomplishments in the future.
The Minister also valued the great efforts made by the delegation of the Kingdom of Bahrain and all government agencies, bodies, councils, the legislative authority and all those who participated in preparing programmes and plans to support this important file.
The presented report included the procedures, programmes and legislations undertaken by the Kingdom, which included all sectors since the last review that took place in 2014, reflecting positively on the development of the trade environment, facilitating trade flows and economic diversification, attracting more investments and speeding up its implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement two years before its launch, in addition to presenting Bahrain's post-pandemic economic recovery plan.
It is worth noting that the Kingdom of Bahrain is a founding member of WTO since 1995.
