The Minister of Industry, Commerce & Tourism Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani received General Manager of GCC Accreditation Center (GAC) Mr.  Ahmed Al Mutery, who presented to the minister a copy of International recognition certificate of the GCC Accreditation Center in three areas of inspection, calibration and examination.

During the meeting, they discussed areas of cooperation with the Center, praising the efforts undertaken by the center. Mr. Ahmed Al Mutery briefed the minister of GAC activities and the importance role of accreditation in enhancing confidence in the quality system. 

It should be noted that GCC Accreditation Center was established on 8 May 2013 with the aim of providing accreditation services in various fields. 

The Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani received MP Jalal Kadhem where they discussed aspects of cooperation and coordination between the Ministry and Council of Representatives.

In this regard, the Minister affirmed Ministry's readiness to provide the support to the Council of Representatives, noting in this regard the Ministry's keenness to coordinate with all concerned parties to achieve the vision and strategies of the government and aspirations of the citizens and residents of the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism receives Ambassador of the Republic of Sri Lanka Dr. A. Saj U. Mendis, where they discussed and reviewed ways of cooperation between the two countries especially in the economic field.

During the meeting, they reviewed the economic infrastructure of the Kingdom of Bahrain and its advantages, which makes Bahrain a preferred investment destination for many of the world's largest industrial and commercial enterprises. The minister appreciates the efforts undertaken by the Sri Lanka Embassy in developing bilateral relation between the two countries and upgrading economic cooperation to the desired level, stressing government’s continuous efforts to foster these relations and increase bilateral cooperation in industrial, commercial and investment sector.

In line with the directives of the Government Executive Committee chaired by HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism and Chairman of the SME Development Board Zayed R. Alzayani launched Export Bahrain.

Launched by the SME Development board in cooperation with Tamkeen, Export Bahrain aims to strengthen the private sector’s role, promote exports and increase the competitive power of local small and medium enterprises.

During the launch, HE the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism delivered a speech in which he thanked HRH the Crown Prince for continuously supporting the initiative, noting that Export Bahrain reflects the Kingdom’s long-standing commitment to accelerating diversification efforts.

HE the Minister went on noting that SME Development Board’s five-year plan includes several initiatives that aim to facilitate financing, increase market access, streamline Bahrain’s business environment, improve skill sets, and foster innovation to achieve sustainable growth. On that note, HE the Minister went on affirming that Export Bahrain will increase exports’ contribution to GDP from 30% to 40%, increase the share of exports from 8% to 20% and increase the number of Bahrainis working in SMEs from 36,000 to 43,000.

HE Mr Khalid Al Rumaihi, Chief Executive of the Economic Development Board (EDB), said: "Export Bahrain will play a major role in increasing domestic exports, an objective that we aim to achieve in the Kingdom. This increase has a direct impact on the trade balance and improved cash reserves, and indirect effects that include contribution to job creation. This is what we seek to achieve in the Economic Development Board through attracting and encouraging domestic and foreign investments in order to raise productivity and increase exports."

The Chief Executive of Tamkeeen, HE Dr. Ibrahim Mohammed Janahi, said that Export Bahrain aims to support local companies that wish to expand into international markets.

HE Mr. Ashish Shah, Director, Division of Country Programmes at the International Trade Centre (ITC), highlighted Export Bahrain’s strong partnership with trade and investment promotion organizations around the world, noting that the establishment will contribute to the diversification of the economy and enhance the competitiveness of SMEs. 

HE Mr. Shah concluded by expressing ITC’s readiness to provide the required technical assistance to enhance exports, which includes providing advisory services to the center, cooperating with the Arab Investment & Export Credit Guarantee to introduce export insurance, and providing financing services in partnership with Bahrain Islamic Bank and Bahrain Development Bank.

Dr Nasser Qaedi, Executive Director of Export Bahrain also gave an overview of the wide-ranging services offered by Export Bahrain in order to achieve its objectives. Qaedi highlighted that Export Bahrain is committed to streamlining export related processes, increase marketing opportunities for exporting SME’s, and enhance their efficiency.

Export Bahrain, in cooperation with a number of local organizations, will launch programs to increase export opportunities by establishing a business directory, and to increase national companies’ export capacities. To achieve that a number of key indicators have been developed to measure and track the growth of exports, the presence of local goods in foreign markets and the national export volume index. 

Today's launch took place in conjunction with the final stage of preparation for the 'Made in Bahrain' trademark, which has been approved by MOICT and will soon be used by local businesses to promote Bahraini-made products.

Under the Patronage of HE the minister of Industry, Commerce & Tourism Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, the 6th International Professional Conference is launched under title of “The Future of the Accounting Profession in Light of the Knowledge Revolution”. The conference is organized by the International Arab Society of Certified Accountants at Wyndham Grand Hotel.

During the opening ceremony, the minister pointed out that the global economy in general and the emerging economies in particular requires more accuracy for the opportunities available. He added that are accounting reports are the most important elements of attracting foreign investments and capital and localization local investments in addition of being a key source of decision-making. 

He pointed out that profession of accounting and auditing are like other professions face many challenges. Globalization and the rapid economic challenges that have emerged in the business environment have slowdown of economic growth, resulted in major changes in the profession of accounting and auditing, and required new roles and duties for accountants and auditors to establish strong rules in line with the developments.

The great efforts and keenness undertaken by the government of the Kingdom of Bahrain to face the challenges professionally has been able to deal with all difficulties, overcome them, and thus maintain its advances position internationally in all economic and developmental fields.  

Director of Standardization & Metrology held a meeting with the representatives of the Bahrain Logistics Syndicate headed by Mr. Abdul Ghaffar Al Bastaki, in the presence of representatives from Bahrain Transport Society and Bahrain Customs Clearance Society.

During the meeting, they discussed the latest developments work process of syndicate on products and national and administrative technical requirements for buses and trucks under the general use classification. They also touched the difficulties that face by traders and importers during customs clearance and mechanisms that contributes to facilitate their work.

The Minister of Industry, Commerce & Tourism Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani chairs the 2nd   meeting of the task force for Reducing Operational Expenditure (Rents). 

During the meeting, they discussed applications received from various government bodies on Operational Expenditure (Rents). Forming task force came to implement the financial balance program, and under the decision of Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs (No. 2/2018) to Assign  the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism to chair  the task force for Reducing Operational Expenditure (Rents).

Under the patronage of the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani, Assistant Undersecretary of Resources & Services Mr. Abdulaziz Alashraaf launched "Bahrain eCommerce Academy" initiative. The ceremony held in cooperation with ThinkSmart for Development and Training and Tamkeen support at the Wyndham Grand Hotel Manama. 

The ceremony began with a welcome speech by Mr. Abdulaziz Alashraaf, in which he stressed the importance of specialized training courses in eCommerce for the adoption of innovation and entrepreneurship, overcoming the technical gap and all the challenges that may face by the commercial establishments in Bahrain. This will help in building a productive economy that is able to compete globally by elevating the private sector, individuals and institutions, and enabling them to play its national role in advancing economic development.

Furthermore, Mr. Alashraf stated that "eCommerce today opens new horizons for businesses in various sectors, especially as the volume of eCommerce sales around the world is increasing and reaching an annual rate of 25.3 trillion US dollars, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) During the opening of the "eCommerce week" in April 2018. He also pointed that the value of eCommerce between companies is estimated at 22.4 trillion US dollars. While the volume of electronic commerce from companies to consumers about 2.9 trillion US dollars. This confirms the vitality of this economic sector and its various successes, especially with the presence of more than two million companies around the world working in this area.”

To support these digital transformations, the Bahrain eCommerce Academy will contribute in the creation of an integrated training platform based on the refinement of technical skills and the provision of the necessary information and expertise, which will encourage investment in the field of eCommerce and qualify the entrepreneurs and the Bahraini community in eCommerce transactions.

Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism always seeks to launch initiatives aimed at regulating trade transactions through the enactment of legal frameworks and legislations that in turn enhance confidence among the dealers.

Moreover, Mr. Ahmed Al-Hujairi, Group CEO of ThinkSmart said in the launching ceremony that "With the technological developments we are witnessing today, the need for specialized training courses in the field of eCommerce has become a prerequisite for the growth of businesses using electronic channels, that help them enter the global markets.”

As well as “this academy will provide Bahraini businessmen and startups with the necessary electronic technical skills and train them on how to use the global platforms such as Amazon that can help immensely in electronic marketing and development.”

Mr. Ahmed Al-Hujairi Appreciated the support of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism for launching the eBusiness academy and Tamkeen for providing financial support through which it will contribute to creating quality training opportunities for Bahrainis in this field.

Founder and Chairman of Aquitude Consulting and Training in the field of eCommerce and digital marketing Ms. Christina Loannidis gave a presentation explaining the future of eBusiness and the elements of success by building clear strategies using the basics of eCommerce.

The first eCommerce training course will be launched today with the participation of 25 trainees from business, and emerging companies to incorporate the basic skills of eCommerce, to understand the concepts needed to manage eBusiness, and to focus on the benefits of eCommerce applications for businesses. This training course will last for four consecutive days at the Wyndham Grand Hotel Manama.