H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, Minister of Industry and Commerce, received H.E. Roderick Drummond, Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Bahrain.
 
The Minister highlighted the historical ties shared between Bahrain and the UK, reaffirming the importance of further strengthening bilateral ties between the two Kingdoms, particularly across trade and investment.
 
For his part, Ambassador Drummond stressed the importance of advancing bilateral cooperation, wishing the Kingdom of Bahrain continued progress and prosperity.

Under the patronage of the Minister of Industry and Commerce, H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, the 15^th Arab Steel Summit and the International Iron and Steel Exhibition, hosted by the Kingdom of Bahrain, launched this morning in conjunction with the 50^th anniversary of the Arab Iron and Steel Union establishment, in the presence of Dr. Kamal Judy, Secretary General of the Arab Iron and Steel Union .  

In a speech delivered on this occasion, H.E. the Minister welcomed the attendees and commended the role of the Arab Iron and Steel Union in developing the Arab iron and steel industry to achieve industrial prosperity, implementing visions and aspirations of HM King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, to achieve comprehensive economic development, and integrated with government efforts under the guidance of HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to achieve economic recovery, hoping that this summit will activate and support integration and exchange of experiences in this continuously developing prominent industrial sector.

H.E. added that the Kingdom of Bahrain achieved continuous success and growth over the past years in the industrial sector, as a result of policies adopted by the government since the sixties, aimed at not relying solely on oil and natural gas products, making the industrial sector an influential sector in the development of Bahrain's economy and seeking to attract foreign investments by encouraging industrial projects and creating the necessary infrastructure for their establishment, which led to the diversity of existing industrial sectors in the Kingdom.

The Minister also noted that in the field of iron and steel industries in Bahrain, there are approximately 20 factories for the production of iron, steel and other structural and industrial iron products with an investment value of more than 2 billion US dollars, providing over 3,000 jobs, including Bahrain Steel Company and Sulb and many companies witnessing growth due to the large local, regional and global demand for such products.

This pivotal sector presents opportunities to establish many other industries and we seek to preserve it and enhance its sustainability. Thus, the Industrial Sector Strategy (2022-2026) was launched as part of the economic recovery plan, which includes 5 main axes: strengthening national industries, investing in infrastructure, improving investors' experience, guiding Bahrainis professionally, updating legislation and laws, and aims to raise the GDP of the industrial sector, increase nationally originated exports, and provide promising job opportunities for citizens. This supports the transformation towards the 4^th Industrial Revolution, applying the concept of a circular carbon economy and environmental and social governance, encouraging investment in technological infrastructure and digitizing manufacturing, and increasing the efficiency of supply chains through the integration of Gulf industries to reach an enhanced sustainable industry. 

The Kingdom of Bahrain is hosting the 15^th summit on the 50^th anniversary of the Arab Iron and Steel Union establishment, the first union of Arab countries under the Council of Arab Economic Unity. This year's summit will discuss a range of important topics, including the pandemic's impact on the economies of Arab and foreign countries, its impact on the steel industry and the repercussions of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the impact of global economic variables, the impact of oil and gas prices on the economies of the steel industry, competitive location, growth strategies, opportunities and challenges of producing products with high added value in the Arab countries, new technologies and their role in diversifying Arab steel production, renewable energy, carbon-free technologies, circular economy and its role in the sustainable development of the steel industry, modern maintenance systems, environmental, health and safety management in the steel industry, raw materials and production requirements and the extent of their impact on the future of the Arab iron and steel industry.

The summit includes a number of organizations, agencies and government bodies associated with trade and industry, steel and rolling production companies, suppliers of steel production technology / basic ores for the iron and steel industry / technological equipment / metal construction companies and companies that worked in the field of iron and steel trade, companies using iron and steel products, investors, businessmen, consultants, engineering and construction companies, logistics and shipping companies, scrap recycling companies, mining companies, engineering and construction companies, in addition to universities and research centers.

On behalf of H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, Minister of Industry and Commerce, Assistant Undersecretary for Industrial Development Dr. Khaled Fahad Alalawi, participated in a dinner reception on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of SMS Technical Services Gulf in the Kingdom of Bahrain, in the presence of H.E. Clemens Hach, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany and a number of senior officials.

On this occasion, Dr. Khaled Fahad Alalawi noted the government's great interest in the industrial sector, which contributes to supporting the process of construction and development in the Kingdom, and creates more qualitative opportunities, implementing the industrial sector strategy (2022-2026), which seeks to create a developed and sustainable industry based on innovative and advanced initiatives through encouraging investment in technological infrastructure and supporting the transformation of the sector towards the 4^th Industrial Revolution, in addition to applying the concepts of circular carbon economy and environmental and social governance.

He also added that Bahrain's hosting of the largest international companies adds to its achievements in attracting and localizing investments and leading global projects in the world, which guarantees integration of added-value chains and supply chains.

on the sidelines of the celebration, Al-Alawi participated in planting a tree that symbolizes encouraging investment in sustainable and green industries, especially (green iron), which can be achieved by adopting digital transformation in the industry, through digitization and encouraging automation in production lines, in addition to renewable energy solutions, which supports the commitment of the Kingdom of Bahrain to reach zero neutrality in 2060.​

SMS Group's launch in Bahrain followed a number of German companies that settled in the Kingdom to conduct business from there to the region, and the group is one of the leading suppliers in the world in the field of supplying industrial products, machinery and services related to the mining value chain in general. It first opened its office in the Kingdom of Bahrain in 2012 and has worked with companies including Alba, GARMCO, SULB and Balexco alongside clients in the region.

H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, Minister of Industry and Commerce, received at his office this morning, Chairman of the Bahrain Airport Services (BAS) Nabeel Kanoo. Where they reviewed developments of the economic and commercial sector in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

In the same context, they reviewed a number of topics related to the airport services sector and its influential growing role, which contributes significantly to global economies. Noting the importance of such meetings and visits in enhancing joint cooperation. 

New British Prime Minister Mr. Rishi Sunak received the Minister of Industry and Commerce, H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, on the sidelines of the Minister's official visit to participate in the Second Arab-British Economic Summit 2022 in London.

the British Prime Minister welcomed H.E. Minister Zayed R. Alzayani alongside Arab Ambassadors to the UK, wishing them continued success in their work, and noted the depth of historical relations and strategic partnership between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the UK. Minister Alzayani stressed that the economic developments witnessed in relations between Bahrain and the UK will develop investment cooperation opportunities between the two sides, positively affecting bilateral trade exchange.

Furthermore, H.E. Minister Zayed R. Alzayani expressed his sincere wishes to the new British Prime Minister Mr. Rishi Sunak, for continued success in his new duties as UK Prime Minister. 

The meeting was attended by the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the UK, Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, a number of Arab ambassadors to the UK and a number of senior officials from both sides.

H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, Minister of Industry and Commerce stressed the depth of historical relations and close strategic partnership between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the UK, noting the importance of continuing the development of bilateral relations between the two countries at various levels, most importantly economics and investments, and pushing joint cooperation towards prospects that provide promising sectors that contribute to the promotion of economic growth and support all development paths towards achieving desired results, in a way that serves the best interest of both countries.

This came during His Excellency's participation in the opening session of the Second Arab-British Economic Summit 2022, held at the Queen Elizabeth II Center in London under the theme "Shaping a Common Vision", organized by the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce, with the participation of government officials, senior executives, leaders and decision makers from across the UK and the Arab world, to discuss diverse trade and investment opportunities, especially those that keep pace with emerging technology-based industries In the presence of His Excellency Sheikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Kingdom .

During his speech, Alzayani noted that Bahrain and UK have deep-rooted 200-year-old relations, which resulted in the growth of trade between the two countries, in addition to the signing of various cooperation agreements and memorandums of understanding that will enhance bilateral commerce and increase the volume of investments.

HE also expressed Bahrain's keenness to raise the levels of global trade exchange and support the foundations and advantages provided by the FTA between Britain and the GCC, which contribute to raising the levels of trade, investment, and development exchange between the two sides.​
 

Alzayani added that the FTA is an ambitious, comprehensive and modern agreement commensurate with the 21st century, and will support economic growth and provide more opportunities through promoting trade in goods and services, as well as innovative new fields and emerging technologies for the mutual benefit of all parties.

H.E. noted that Dr. Nayef Falah Mubarak Al-Hajraf, Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and British Secretary of State for International trade, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, signed the launch of the FTA negotiations between the GCC and the UK and Northern Ireland on June 22, 2022 at the headquarters of the General Secretariat in Riyadh, in the presence of their Excellencies GCC Ministers of Commerce, in a plan to move forward towards strengthening strategic relations.

In the conclusion of his speech, H.E. stated that the first round of negotiations aims to explore the views of the Gulf and British sides on the topics in negotiations' terms of reference, in preparation for the drafting of the legal texts of the agreement and the start of discussions, as the first round was held from 22 to 25 August 2022, led by H.E. Ms. Eman Ahmed Al-Doseri, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce and Acting Chairman of the Gulf Negotiations Group.

The Arab-British Economic Summit in its second edition dealt with many important topics, including highlighting important issues, most notably the FTA, ways to promote Arab-British trade and investment, renewable energy, investment in health technology, the technological revolution in the education sector, financial technology and the promotion of digital cooperation and other important topics.

H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, Minister of Industry and Commerce, affirmed the government's pride in the strategic partnership between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the US in the industrial and commercial sectors, noting the abundance of economic opportunities in the Kingdom, motivating companies to invest and expand their business in Bahrain. The US Trade Zone is one of the most prominent outcomes of the official visit of HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to the US in November 2019, which resulted in an MOU in 2021 to establish this zone to strengthen economic, trade and industrial cooperation and advance bilateral trade, according to the advantages of the FTA between Bahrain and the US, in addition to investment opportunities in the region. H.E. Ambassador SH Abdullah bin Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, Ambassador of Bahrain to the US, was briefed on the U.S. Trade Zone by H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, Minister of Industry and Commerce, in the presence of the Head of Political and Economic Affairs at the US Embassy to the Kingdom of Bahrain, Elizabeth Hatting.

The Minister and the Ambassador also visited the location of the area in Salman Industrial City, where he noted establishing the US commercial zone infrastructure is one of the most prominent projects listed under the infrastructure investment axis within the industrial sector strategy 2022-2026.

Moreover, the Minister praised the efforts of the Embassy of Bahrain in the US in presenting investment opportunities in Bahrain to the US, which contributes to increasing the volume of trade between the two countries and achieving objectives of Bahrain's Economic Vision 2030.

Within the framework of the meetings of the Ministers of Commerce and Industry of the (GCC) in Riyadh, Minister of Industry and Commerce H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani participated in the launch of the Future Factories Program in the presence of (GCC) Ministers of Commerce and Industry, held at Prince Saud Al-Faisal Convention Center at the headquarters of the General Secretariat in Riyadh.  

The Minister praised the objectives of the Future Factories Program implemented by the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the developmental role of such ambitious programs on the industrial sector.

The launch of the Future Factories Program aims to develop factories digitally, raise the competitiveness of national industry, in addition to designing high standard factories, and developing existing factories into operational excellence standards and advanced technologies.