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.   

The eCommerce Conference for Small and Medium Enterprises 2021 has concluded, which was launched under the Patronage of H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Al Zayani the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, which aimed at highlighting the topic of “Business Digital Transformation", for three days, from November 23, 2021 to November 25, 2021 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am in Crowne Plaza Hotel, and was attended by participants from several small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs, either through physical attendance or virtual attendance through ZOOM platform.

In the presence of the Assistant Undersecretary for Control and Resources Mr. Abdulaziz Alashraaf the conference continued with the fifth discussion panel entitled “Logistics and Exports", in which Mr. Mohammed Fareed, Business Development Manager at DHL International, explained several aspects of logistics services in terms of implementation, receipt, delivery and logistics innovation methods. This is what small and medium enterprises need to expand their business electronically and globally. While some of the success stories and experiences in this field were hosted, the first was the experience of Wasel Delivery Company, where Mr. Hussain Radhi, Head of Marketing and Public Relations, presented the company's services that will help entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises to grow in the commercial markets. While the second success experience is for UBEX Courier Services (UBEX), where Mr. Ahmed Alqasimy, International Business Development Manager at the company, focused on the Cross-Border eCommerce through the services and applications that the company provides to enable institutions to enter the global markets.

The conference concluded its sessions with the sixth discussion panel with the topic of "Government initiatives to promote and develop the eCommerce sector", in which several government entities provided the services available to small and medium enterprises that would contribute to promoting and facilitating eCommerce, including the participation of Mr. Mohammed Alrashid, Head of EMS and Parcels from Bahrain Post at the Ministry of Transport and Communications, through which he explained the most important initiatives offered by Bahrain Post in this regard. As for Mrs. Rabab Khalaf, Specialist in Planning and Market Intelligence in Bahrain Exports, she emphasized through her presentation in this discussion panel, the importance of eCommerce and export specially for small and medium enterprises. The initiatives continued with Mr. Mohamed Al Marashda, specialist in partnerships and Customer engagement at Labor Fund (Tamkeen) by highlighting on a set of programs that Tamkeen provides in the field of eCommerce support.

In addition, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism has contributed through government initiatives provided by several concerned directorates that specialize in this field, including the Information Systems Directorate where Mr. Hussain Albosta, Chief of eCommerce Applications Section, presented the eMall initiative and the steps to join it. As for the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Directorate, Mr. Abdulla Abdulmunem Almahmood, Senior Financial Analysist, presented the SME's Registration System in the Ministry. The discussion session was ended with the Registration Directorate with Mr. Hassan Alawad, Senior Investor Services Specialist, who explained to the attendees the idea of "Sijili" and its advantages for business owners. While Mr. Jamal Naser, Senior Legal Researcher in the Consumer Protection Directorate, presented the topic of eCommerce and Consumer Protection

The conference was accompanied by an exhibition for the companies and commercial establishments to present the most prominent projects and online solutions and to provide exclusive packages and offers for SME's owners.

The Assistant Undersecretary for Control and Resources expressed his sincere gratitude and appreciation to all participating companies and institutions. ​

The activities of the second day of the eCommerce Conference for Small and Medium Enterprises 2021 continued under the Patronage of H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Al Zayani the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, the eCommerce Conference for SME's which highlights the topic of “Business Digital Transformation". The Conference was launched yesterday Tuesday, November 23, 2021 and it will continue till November 25, 2021 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am in Crowne Plaza Hotel. The Conference is being attended by participants from several small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs, either through physical attendance or virtual attendance through ZOOM platform.                                         In the presence of His Excellency the Assistant Undersecretary for Control and Resources, Mr. Abdulaziz Mohammed Al-Ashraf The third discussion panel of the conference entitled “eStores & eMarketplaces" was initiated and highlighted the steps of creating an integrated eStore and how to join the eMarketplaces through what Mrs. Nada Alawi Shubbar, Founder and Creative Director from Annada E-commerce Trading by presenting the journey of establishing Annada E-commerce Trading Company in the field of eCommerce. In addition, HOMIEZ Platform presented its experience in the field of digital commerce in the Kingdom of Bahrain through the presentation of Mr. Ebrahim Khalil Ibrahim, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of HOMIEZ platform. Also, success stories and experiences were also hosted locally in this field, most notably Talabat Services Company story, which was presented by Mr. Ahmed Abdulrasool Saleh, Head of Sales Department from Talabat Services Company. While Mrs. Nahla Mahmood Al Mahmood, Founder and General manager of LalaBella Events & Flowers, presented the -FIRST- Code in E-Commerce.

From the other side, the activities of the conference were continued by the fourth discussion panel, entitled “eCommerce Innovation Lab" which is related to the initiatives of incubators which aims to support eCommerce for entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises, most notably the participation of Mr. Ali Hussain Mubarak from Brinc Batelco IoT Hub that emphasized the importance of digital transformation in incubators and support services provided to startups by Brinc Center. As for Dr. Esra Ahmed Wali, Director of the Business Incubator Center from University of Bahrain, she spoke about supporting graduate students who have innovative ideas in the field of eCommerce. The discussion panel concluded by presenting the experience of the student Talha Iftikhar Ahmed, CEO and Co-founder of the Voice Mate Program from the Business Incubator Center at the University of Bahrain.

The conference is accompanied by an exhibition for the companies and commercial establishments to present the most prominent projects and online solutions and to provide exclusive packages and offers for SME's owners.

His Excellency the Assistant Undersecretary for Control and Resources honored the companies and commercial institutions participating in the conference. ​

Under the Patronage of H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Al Zayani the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, the eCommerce Conference for SME's which shall highlight the topic of “Business Digital Transformation" launched today Tuesday 23^rd November 2021 and will be continued till Wednesday 25^th November 2021 in Crowne Plaza Hotel and attended by participants from several small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs, either through physical attendance or virtual attendance via ZOOM platform.

The conference began with presenting a speech by H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Al Zayani the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, in which he explained the importance of continuing to organize these events that are aimed to encourage owners of small and medium commercial enterprises towards the digital transformation that the world is witnessing today through creating a link between entrepreneurs and owners of small and medium enterprises and those interested in the field of eCommerce to discuss the most important developments of technical solutions and eCommerce tools.

From this perspective, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, will introduce initiatives related to the national strategy to support eCommerce in the Kingdom of Bahrain and to contribute in encouraging the adoption of the latest eCommerce tools to enable commercial enterprises to move towards entrepreneurship and innovation. The combined efforts of government and private agencies will contribute to increase awareness of procedures and facilities, enhance competitiveness for the sustainability of small and medium enterprises, and move towards their expansion into global markets.

In this context, His Excellency indicated that “given the Kingdom of Bahrain's advanced and secure infrastructure in the communications and information technology sector, this has resulted in a rapid and remarkable transformation in eCommerce, as it has become increasingly popular, which has caused a remarkable qualitative leap in electronic stores. The local economic indicators also showed that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are one of the fastest growing eCommerce markets in the world. The eCommerce sector's sales witnessed a tremendous growth of $24 billion for the year 2020, and the eCommerce market in the GCC countries is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 20% between 2020-2022, according to the latest update from Kearney, which is a global management consulting firm with offices in more than 40 countries worldwide. And considered one of the top companies in administrative and strategic consultations.

As for the Kingdom of Bahrain, it is expected that the annual rate of its electronic markets will grow by 27.3% by 2022, which is a unique opportunity for Bahraini merchants to develop their e-businesses locally and internationally, according to the MEASA eCommerce Landscape report prepared by Dubai CommerCity in June 2021,which is the first dedicated eCommerce free zone in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA)."

And then, the conference began with more than 500 participants in both physical and online platform via zoom, in which the first panel discussion entitled “eCommerce Solutions" began with Mr. AbdelKarim Abu Jaber, Territory Sales & Channel Manager from Microsoft Bahrain and Oman, by raising the topic of “Becoming Digital", and then the Bahrain Telecommunications Company (Batelco) highlighted on "Digital Solutions for Small Enterprises in the Kingdom of Bahrain" presented by Mr. Abubaker Bassam Bukhowa , Enterprise Digital Products Manager in the Company's Commercial Sector. The panel discussion was continued by hosting Mr. Munther AlArayedh, Managing Director of HA Consultancies, added the experience of his leading company in the field of providing eCommerce solutions. In the conclusion of the panel, Mrs. Abeer Ali, Business Development Manager at Maroon Frog, presented the topic of "Digital Marketing Strategies" and its importance in the field of eCommerce for SME's.

The second panel discussion covered the topic “ePayment and banking services" and began with the presentation of BENEFIT Company presented by Mr. Ahmed Fuad Al-Mahri, Senior Manager of Business Development, which he discussed “Wallet and ePayment gateway". The conversation continued with CrediMax with Mr. Ali AlMeshal, Head of Digital Business and Innovation, who highlighted the importance of adding a digital partner and ePayment gateways for SME's. While Mrs. Amira Ismail Mohamed, Head of Acquiring Bahrain and Oman Operations, from Arab Financial Services Company (AFS), and she introduced to the visitors the latest technologies in the field of "eInvoices " and how it facilitate the electronic services in the field of ePayment for commercial establishments. The second panel discussion concluded with Mr. Ahmed Alaradi Head of Business Development in Tap Payments company, presenting his company's success experience in the field of ePayment.

The conference will be accompanied by an exhibition for the companies and commercial establishments to present the most prominent projects and online solutions, and to provide exclusive packages and offers for SME's owners.​

Under the Patronage of H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Al Zayani the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, the eCommerce Conference for SME’s which shall highlight the topic of “Business Digital Transformation” will be launched tomorrow, for three days, from November 23rd, 2021 to November 25th, 2021 in Crowne Plaza Hotel, and will be attended by participants from several small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs, either through physical or virtual attendance via ZOOM platform.

 

Moreover, Mr. Abdulaziz Alashraaf, Assistant Undersecretary of Control and Resources stated that this initiative is one of the eCommerce National Strategy initiatives to facilitate the eCommerce sector in the Kingdom of Bahrain, which aims to provide the latest technical solutions and trends in eCommerce field that will enhance the digital transformation for the commercial establishments and in addition to increase awareness of the procedures that contribute to stimulating their businesses to keep up with the future trends in eCommerce sector. Furthermore, the conference will be accompanied by an exhibition for the companies and commercial establishments to present the most prominent projects and online solutions, and to provide exclusive packages and offers for SME’s owners.

Furthermore, Alashraaf elaborated that to encourage the SME’s towards digital transformation by providing the latest services and technological solutions in the field of eCommerce, which will be highlighted throughout the topics of the conference. On the first day, Tuesday, November 23rd, 2021 during the first discussion panel that will discuss the “eCommerce Solutions” by Microsoft Bahrain & Oman and Bahrain Telecommunications Company (Batelco), in addition to explaining the digital marketing strategies that will be presented by Maroon Frog in addition to expressing the successful story of HA consultancies. The second panel discussion is entitled “ePayments and Banking Services”, in which Benefit Company, CrediMax, Arab Financial Services (AFS) and Tap Payments will participate to present what’s new in the field of ePayments applications.

 

On the second day of the conference, the third panel discussion will focus on “eStores and eMarketplaces” presenting for the SME’s the steps of creating eStores and eMarketplaces, which will be explained by Annada eCommerce Trading and Homiez Platform the leading platform in the field of online shopping. As for Talabat Services Company and Lalabella Events, they will be presenting their successful stories in this field. While the fourth panel discussion the “eCommerce Innovation Lab” which is focused toward supporting creative ideas through the services that will be provided by the Business Incubator Tenmou, Brinc Batelco IoT Hub and UOB Business Incubator Center.

Moreover, the Assistant Undersecretary of Control and Resources indicated that the conference will conclude on its third day, Thursday, November 25th, 2021, with the fifth panel discussion entitled “Logistics and Exports”, hosted by DHL, Wasel Delivery Company and UBEX Courier Services, While the sixth discussion session will present the “Government Initiatives” that contribute to support and develop the eCommerce sector through the participation of several government entities concerned with this, most notably Bahrain Post, Tamkeen, and Exports Bahrain, in addition to the relevant departments in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, which are: the SME’s Development Directorate, Registration Directorate, Consumer Protection Directorate, and Information Systems Directorate.

In conclusion, Alashraaf gave emphasis on the importance of digital transformation of small and medium enterprises in eCommerce field, and that the Ministry intends to launch a package of upcoming initiatives that aims at promoting and facilitating eCommerce in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

In line with the Kingdom of Bahrain's comprehensive development goals, led by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, His Excellency Zayed R. alZayani, the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority, today announced the new 2022-2026 tourism strategy which aims to diversify the Kingdom's economic portfolio, in parallel with the recently launched Economic Recovery Plan.

 

HE the Minister's announcement was made during a press conference organised by the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre.

 

The Minister added that the Kingdom of Bahrain is working on increasing the tourism sector's contribution to GDP, in line with the government's development plans, headed by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister.

 

HE the Minister noted that in line with the Kingdom's economic recovery plan, the tourism sector will aim to increase the total number of tourists to 14.1 million by 2026, the average daily visitor spends to BHD 74.8 and raise the average tourist's stay to 3.5 days.

 

HE alZayani highlighted that the tourism plan will contribute to the national economy, increase the Kingdom's competitiveness, and attract further investments that will benefit the country and its citizens.

 

HE alZayani added that the new tourism strategy is an extension of the 2016-2019 strategy, which has achieved its goals despite various challenges.

 

"When the strategy was launched in 2015, the travel and tourism sector represented less than 4% of the gross domestic product. Tourism's contribution to GDP has grown to approximately 7% as a result of the efforts and initiatives launched by the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority," the Minister noted.

 

HE the Minister stressed that efforts will be increased to ensure the success of the new tourism strategy.

 

HE alZayani outlined the strategy's framework, which includes four main objectives: increase the contribution of tourism to GDP to reach 11.4% in 2026, to highlight Bahrain's position as a global tourist hub, increase the number of targeted countries to attract more tourists, and diversify tourism products.

 

Minister alZayani indicated that the plan is based on four strategies: to facilitate entry into the Kingdom, diversify and develop tourist attractions, market and promote tourism via the Kingdom's national carrier "Gulf Air" in partnership with the private sector, and enhance tourist accommodation.

 

HE alZayani noted the role of travel agencies in further developing the tourism sector, adding that the best travel agents have been identified in the main global markets to target and attract additional tourists.

 

​HE alZayani emphasised that the tourism strategy relies on seven pillars: developing marine attractions, business tourism, sports tourism, recreational tourism, medical tourism, cultural tourism, and media tourism and cinematography.

 

HE the Minister noted that the launch of the new tourism strategy follows the implementation of major national tourism projects, including the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre in Sakhir, which is expected to be completed by the end of next year.

 

The Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority is also developing several tourism projects, including the diving waterfront, the Bahrain Bay beach project, and the Qalali Coast waterfront.

 

HE the Minister said that the implementation of the economic recovery plan and the tourism sector development strategy has led to the construction of the Al Dana Theatre, which held its first event yesterday.

 

In this regard, HE the Minister stressed the importance of these national tourism projects to showcase Bahrain as a destination, thus contributing to economic growth and creating opportunities for citizens.

 

The Minister also highlighted the progress of work on tourist resort projects, such as the Mantis Hotel and Resort in the Hawar Islands, the Jumeirah Bahrain Bay Resort, the Tourist City project, the Bilaj Aljazayer Beach development project, and the Saada project, which will be completed by January 2023.

Under the Patronage of H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Al Zayani the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, the Information Systems Directorate in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism will be hosting the eCommerce Conference for SME’s which shall highlight the topic of “Business Digital Transformation”, over the period of three days, starting from November,23 2021 to November,25 2021 in Crown Plaza Hotel, and will be attended by participants from several small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs, either through physical attendance or virtual attendance through ZOOM platform.

 

This event is considered a unique opportunity that opens its doors and encourages SME’s to adopt the latest eCommerce trends and enables them toward faster digital transformation and innovation to empower them to compete globally. The conference will include various discussion panels that will be attended by specialized companies in the field of eCommerce and digital transformation and present the most prominent success stories in the local market. The conference activities will begin with a focus on digital solutions in the eCommerce field, for example, artificial intelligence technology, the importance of the Internet of Things, 5G networks and digital marketing channels. Furthermore, it shall highlight ePayments solutions such as eWallets and electronic payment gateways that facilitate and manage the electronic transactions easily and safely.

 

Considering the spread of eStores and eMarketplaces nowadays, it has become necessary to focus on the steps of creating a successful eStore and eMarketplace, and to highlight the importance of the digital marketing which will increase the spread of products or services provided via the Internet. Moreover, it is noteworthy to address the significant role of the logistics and export which enable businesses to expand locally and internationally. Prominent local and international export companies will be hosted to discuss the latest logistic solutions and present success stories in the field of cross-border eCommerce. Highlight 

 

In addition, the conference will discuss two types of support provided for SME’s; The first part will highlight the role of related entities that are concerned with the innovation lab in the field of eCommerce to facilitate digital transformation for entrepreneurs through discussing and presenting creative ideas and the possibility to convert them into real projects through the participation of business incubators and accelerators. The second part will examine the initiatives offered by government sector to foster and develop the eCommerce sector and to overcome the challenges that business owners may face in this field.

 

The conference will be accompanied by an exhibition for relevant companies and commercial establishments to present the most prominent projects and online Solutions and to provide exclusive packages and offers to SMEs owners.  Furthermore, this event is considered as a meeting point to exchange experiences and learn about successful experiences and applications locally in the field of eCommerce.

 

The registration is still open for SMEs owners and all interested in the field of the digital transformation to participate in the event by registering through this link https://service.moic.gov.bh/eform/ecom_sme. For further inquiries and information about the event, please do not hesitate to contact us on 17574782, or via ecom@www.moic.gov.bh​.

Under the Patronage of H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Al Zayani the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, the Information Systems Directorate in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism will be hosting the eCommerce Conference for SME's which shall highlight the topic of “Business Digital Transformation", for a period of three days, from November, 23^rd  2021 to November, 25^th 2021 in Crowne Plaza Hotel, and will be attended by more than 5,000 participants from several small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs, either through physical attendance or virtual attendance by ZOOM platform.

This initiative is one of the eCommerce National Strategy initiatives to facilitate the eCommerce sector in the Kingdom of Bahrain, which aims to provide the latest technical solutions and trends in eCommerce field that will enhance the digital transformation for the commercial establishments, and in addition to increase awareness of the procedures that contribute to stimulating their businesses to keep up with the future trends in eCommerce sector. The conference will highlight the best practices and gather experts under one roof in an annual event and will host the most prominent success stories and popular practices in the local market in this field.

The conference will include several discussion panels which will serve as a link between entrepreneurs, business owners, companies, small and medium enterprises and specialists in the field of eCommerce and between government and private sectors concerned with providing eCommerce services, solutions and trends, which will contribute to encourage the spread of these establishments and expand their online transactions, and it opens the door for expansion towards global markets, which in turn will increases the growth of Bahrain economy.

Hence, we would like to invite all interested in this field to participate in the event by registering via the following link: https://service.moic.gov.bh/eform/ecom_sme. For further information and details about the event, please contact us on 17574782 or by email: ecom@www.moic.gov.bh.