H.E. Mr. Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro Minister of Industry and Commerce affirmed the keenness of the Kingdom of Bahrain to enhance trade cooperation with the United States of America in various sectors.

This came within the framework of His Excellency's official visit to the United States, where he met the United States Trade Representative Ambassador Catherine Tai, in the presence of Shaikh Hamad bin Salman Al Khalifa, Assistant Undersecretary for Domestic and Foreign Trade at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, and a number of senior officials from both sides, in Washington, DC.

During the meeting, the Minister of Industry and Commerce stressed the importance of the joint relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the United States of America, continuously strengthened through joint agreements and mutual visits, in addition to various cooperation and exchange programs related to trade. H.E. stressed the vital role of the private sector in both countries in benefiting from the advantages of bilateral agreements, which reflect positively on increasing the volume of trade exchange and expanding the scope of exports and imports between the two countries.

As part of his official visit to the United States, H.E. Mr. Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, Minister of Industry and Commerce, participated in roundtable discussions organized by the US-Arab Chamber of Commerce. In the presence of Mr. David Hammoud, President and CEO of the National US-Arab Chamber of Commerce, and Sameer Abdulla Nass, chairman of the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), and a number of officials and businessmen from both sides.

The discussions highlighted ways to enhance economic cooperation between the two countries by strengthening trade and investment ties and encouraging exchange of expertise and knowledge in various fields. As well as the importance of strengthening and activating the role of the private sector in developing these relations and creating strategic partnerships between companies and institutions in both countries.

The discussions also reviewed promising investment opportunities presented by the Kingdom of Bahrain in various sectors, including industry, technology, tourism and logistics, noting the advantages and facilities provided by the Kingdom of Bahrain to attract investors to establish and expand their businesses there. The discussions also stressed the importance of the free trade agreement in enhancing trade exchange and facilitate investments flow.

Mr. David Hammoud praised Bahrain’s remarkable progress in developing the business environment, and its adoption of open economic policies that attract qualitative investment in major economic projects. Stressing the importance of continuing joint work between the US-Arab Chamber of Commerce and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce to enhance cooperation between the business communities in both countries, and to leverage existing investment and economic opportunities.

As part of the coordination efforts between the Ministry of Industry and Commerce and the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Industrial Development Directorate, in coordination with the Industry and Energy Committee, conducted a visit to the "Medal Cables Co. W.L.L." factory. The visit was attended by seven ambassadors from friendly countries (the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Kingdom of Morocco, the Russian Federation, the People's Republic of China, the Republic of Korea, the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, and the Republic of the Philippines) with the aim of introducing the Medal factory and its products and exploring new cooperation opportunities and expanding the factory's production horizons with friendly countries. The attendees were received by Mr. Rashid Hameed Al Zayani, Director and Member of the Board of Directors of Medal Cables company and Engineer Khaled Abdul Latif, Group CEO of Medal Cables.

During the visit, Mr. Khalid Salman Al Qasimi, Director of Industrial Development at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, expressed his appreciation for the factory's efforts and briefed the attendees on the most important initiatives of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce that are provided to factories, which are in line with the pillars of the Industry Sector Strategy 2022-2026. These initiatives include:

• "i Factories" initiative: This initiative aims to support the transformation of the industrial sector toward the "Fourth Industrial Revolution" by measuring factory readiness and its digital maturity in order to enable them to invest in technology infrastructure and automation using the Smart Industry Readiness Index (SIRI).
• "The integrated industrial partnership for sustainable economic development with the UAE, Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco" initiative: This initiative aims to achieve integration between the components, capabilities and expertise possessed by partner countries to create industrial opportunities that contribute to diversifying the economy and increasing the competitiveness and flexibility of the industrial sector. The importance of this initiative lies in strengthening partnerships between member countries aiming to feed this promising sector with growth and development boosters.
• "In-Country Value in Industry (Takamul) Program" initiative: This initiative aims to measure the contribution of factories to the national economy's development, where industrial establishments can obtain the In-country Value Certificate (Takamul) to be a preferred option in future government purchases.

Al Qasimi praised Medal's completion of the self-assessment to measure the readiness of smart factories with the support of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. He also appreciated the factory management's interest in expanding its industrial and logistical operations, confirming the ministry's full support for the factory's efforts in this field.

This visit comes within the framework of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce's efforts to enhance Bahrain's position as a leading regional industrial center and to strengthen cooperation with friendly countries in this field.

H.E. Mr. Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro Minister of Industry and Commerce affirmed the keenness to strengthen bilateral relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the United States of America in all fields.

This came during a meeting between the Minister, and H.E. Steven C. Bondy, US Ambassador to the Kingdom of Bahrain, where the Minister noted the importance of advancing joint cooperation, and highlighted the role of the private sector in both countries in maximizing the benefit of the advantages offered by bilateral agreements and expanding the base of joint cooperation.

Moreover, the meeting reviewed a number of issues of common interest in an aim to achieve common aspirations.

H.E. Mr. Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, Minister of Industry and Commerce, inaugurated the "Art by Adliya Furnishing" showroom in Sehla, where he was received by Mr. Fuad Bukanan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Adliya Furniture Company, and a number of concerned officials. 

His Excellency affirmed the outstanding contributions of local companies in developing the industrial and commercial sectors in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

"Art by Adliya Furnishing" is a new addition to Adliya Furniture Group, one of the leading national companies in the field of furniture sale and design for over 40 years.

H.E. Mr. Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro Minister of Industry and Commerce met the Russian Minister of Culture Olga Lyubimova, in the presence of a number of officials from both sides, on the sidelines of his participation in the twenty-seventh St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in the Russian Federation.

The Minister praised the depth of Bahraini-Russian relations, noting the importance of pushing efforts to advance the prospects of bilateral cooperation, raise trade exchange rates and exchange experiences between the two countries to achieve common aspirations and goals. His Excellency also Highlighted Bahrain’s advantage as a distinguished and attractive center for global investments, noting the stimulating environment and facilities provided by the government to investors from all over the world.

Moreover, the meeting discussed and reviewed a number of issues of common interest, and topics related to the work of the Joint Intergovernmental Committee, as well as keenness to activate work mechanisms and inter-coordination, and push joint relations

As part of the coordination between the Ministry of Industry and Commerce and the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Industrial Development Directorate, in coordination with the Industry and Energy Committee, visited "Mondelez Bahrain Biscuits " to view the latest developments in the facility, in the presence of a number of ambassadors.

Mr. Khalid Salman Al Qasimi, Director of Industrial Development at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce hailed the success achieved by the factory within the iFactories initiative, which comes in line with the industrial sector strategy 2022-2026, noting that the factory has completed the self-assessment to measure the iFactories readiness and the approved evaluation with the support of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.

Al Qasimi praised the commitment of the factory management to the development of industrial and logistics process automation, and noted the support that the factory received in the development plan from the initiative's partners Tamkeen, stressing that the factory is a model in applying the tools of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and digital maturity.

H.E. Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro Minister of Industry and Commerce hailed the development of relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the People's Republic of China, pointing to the importance of consolidating aspects of cooperation to benefit both countries.

This came during Minister Fakhro's meeting with Chinese Assistant Minister of Commerce HE MR. Tang Wenhong , where they discussed a number of topics related to promoting bilateral trade and expanding investment opportunities between the two countries, in addition to reviewing opportunities in trade sectors, and exchanging experiences and technologies in areas of common interest, within the framework of the visit of the Minister of Industry and Commerce to the People's Republic of China.

The Chinese Assistant Minister of Commerce stressed keenness to develop aspects of commercial cooperation with the Kingdom of Bahrain and advancing mutual coordination to achieve common aspirations.