His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa has lauded the recent successful and fruitful visits of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam and Thailand.

HRH the Prime Minister described the royal visits as very successful and fruitful, stressing that they are important in promoting the kingdom’s political, economic and investment cooperation with these countries and in adding a new dimension to Bahrain’s relations with them.

The Prime Minister also highlighted the importance of the talks held between HM King Hamad and the leaders and senior officials of those countries, and praised the gracious welcome accorded to HM the King, as well as the memoranda of understanding and agreements signed on the sidelines of the royal visits.

HRH Premier made the statements while chairing the regular weekly Cabinet session, attended by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, at the Gudaibiya Palace today.

A statement by the Cabinet Secretary-General, Dr. Yasser bin Isa Al-Nasser said that the session had welcomed the visit of the Egyptian President, Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, to Bahrain, and wished him a pleasant stay in Bahrain.

The Cabinet lauded the solid fraternal Bahraini-Egyptian relations, stressing the importance of President el-Sisi’s visit in strengthening bilateral ties and bolstering cooperation.

The session also lauded the outcomes of the recent visit of the Thai Prime Minister, General Prayut Chan-o-cha, to the kingdom at the invitation of HRH Premier.

In this regard, the Cabinet commended the fruitful talks held between the two sides, under the chairmanship of HRH the Prime Minister and his Thai counterpart, stressing their importance in strengthening bilateral relations and bolstering cooperation.

HRH the Prime Minister called for holding more specialised exhibitions that boost the urban and real estate development in the kingdom and promote its projects in order to revitalise the construction and contracting sector, citing the Gulf Construction Expo (GC Expo 2017), the Gulf Property Show and the Gulf Interiors Exhibition (gulfInteriors 2017), held recently under the Prime Minister’s patronage and opened on his behalf by Deputy Premier, HH Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa.

Tackling the Bahrain Press Day, HRH the Prime Minister congratulated the press and media community, and wished Bahraini columnists, journalists and media personnel every success in assuming their patriotic duties of championing the issues of the nation and the citizens.
The Premier hailed their commendable dedicated efforts in defending the nation and its international standing through honest contributions and accurate information, expressing the pulse of society and its concerns, consolidating love and co-existence among peoples and religions, as well as in denouncing hatred, sectarianism and everything that may affect national unity.
He reiterated the government’s keenness on enabling the press and media personnel to play their role professionally and independently and on putting in place a positive environment that stimulates them to exercise their duties within an atmosphere of freedom guaranteed by the Constitution.

The session welcomed the kingdom’s hosting of the congress of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), and tasked all relevant sides to consolidate the necessary preparations to ensure the success of such a major international gathering and highlight the kingdom’s status as a global destination for hosting mega sporting events.

On development, HRH the Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Housing to follow up on the housing needs of Salmabad residents, in line with his keenness to ensure the citizens’ access to all government-funded services.

The Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Works, Municipalities’ Affairs and Urban Planning to immediately find solutions that prevent any environmental or health effects or disturbance that may result from the pooling of water and stagnant surfaces in some areas in the village of Qalali and nearby regions.

In another context, HRH Premier instructed the competent sides to expedite procedures that enable charity societies to deliver their services, especially during the holy month of Ramadan, stressing the need to be committed to laws and regulations governing the raising of funds and donations.

The session also reviewed the preparations of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism regarding the supply of food materials and ensuring the stability of their prices.

The Cabinet was informed about the fish die-off in some neighbouring countries, and was re-assured about the safety of fish in the kingdom’s waters. It gave instructions to the competent authorities to continue the laboratory testing of fish and subject them to continuous control.
The session discussed the fiscal situation in the kingdom and the provision of resources that ensure the sustainability of the state budget, achieve balance between revenues and expenditures, ensure the continuity of the work of the government apparatus in terms of efficiency and productivity and support the growth of promising economic sectors to create new job opportunities for the citizens.

In this context, the session reviewed the financial and economic challenges created by the fluctuation of oil prices and their impact on the government’s ability to continue its future spending, as well as its efforts to reduce budget deficit and maintain secure levels of public debt.

The session discussed a number of initiatives to increase non-oil revenues, and the option of decreasing expenditures in the draft law on the state budget for the two fiscal years, 2017 and 2018.

It also discussed the recommendations and the options presented by the Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs and Rationalising Expenditure, as highlighted in the memorandum submitted by the Deputy Premier and committee chairman, and adopted the recommendations contained in the report issued by the advisory mission of the International Monetary Fund on ways to deal with the budget deficit.

The Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs and Rationalising Expenditure was requested to continue studying the necessary options and recommendations to deal with budget deficit.

The session approved the recommendations of the Board of Directors of the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) to adjust the land rents of the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre, as well as its recommendations on the licenses it issued in line with the provisions of Article Five of Decree Law 31/2015 on the establishment of BTEA, as outlined in the memorandum presented by the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, and BTEA board chairman.

The Cabinet also approved the signing of the an agreement between Bahrain and South Korea on air services between and beyond their respective territories, and mandated the relevant minister to sign it on behalf of the Government of Bahrain.

The session also endorsed four proposals submitted by the Council of Representatives, and approved the government’s replies to them which had been prepared by the Ministerial Committee for Legal Affairs.

The proposals included the allocation of a land lot to build an events hall in Busaiteen, in line with the directives of HM the King in this regard, the application of the fingerprint system for all expatriates at the kingdom’s various exits, revamping the sea front of Al-Fateh Avenue, and the new building and branches for the General Directorate of Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs (NPRA).