ATO Congress kicks off

Manama, May 29 (BNA): His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa has deputised Deputy Premier Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa to attend the opening ceremony of the 17th Congress of the Arab Towns Organisation (ATO), themed "Exploring the Cities of the Future and Enriching the Creativity and Knowledge Industry". The event attracted about 400 high-profile Arab officials, including the Speaker of the Council of Representatives Ahmed bin Ibrahim Al-Mulla, ministers, Jordanian Minister Waleed Al-Masri, Kuwaiti Al-Farwaniya Governor Sheikh Faisal Al-Hamood Al-Malik Al-Sabah, municipal councils' chairmen, senior state officials and representatives of Arab municipalities. Addressing the opening session, the deputy premier asserted that HRH the Prime Minister's patronage of the event proves the belief of the government of the pioneering goals of ATO, and its keenness on activating Arab complementarity to achieve sustainable development. He affirmed that Bahrain, which was among the first countries that had contributed to the establishment of ATO and officially joined it in 1960s, would provide ATO so as to be able to achieve its goals. Thanks to the leadership's support, the kingdom has made major strides to develop the urbanisation of its main towns and cities while preserving their traditional architecture, highlighting Bahrain's efforts to maintain the existing cities and build new ones to cope with population growth, citing the North City and East Hidd City. HH Shaikh Khalid lauded His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa's issuance of Decree 35/2016 on the establishment of the High Committee for Urban Planning, under the Chairmanship of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, as well as the issuance of Decree 36/2016 approving the Strategic Structural Plan of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The deputy premier congratulated ATO's new Secretary-General Ahmed Al-Subaih. He is also congratulated ATO members on the near advent of the 50th anniversary of ATO. Meanwhile, Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Minister Essam bin Abdulla Khalaf praised HRH Premier's patronage of the event. He highlighted the kingdom's plans to upgrade the competence of the municipalities' staff through training and exchange of expertise. ATO's Secretary-General Ahmed Al-Subaih extended sincere thanks and appreciation to HRH Premier for patronising ATO's 17th Congress. He called on participating towns to be involved in ATO's activities more effectively in order to address the social issues and the economic and environmental challenges.