It is our honour and responsibility to continue to work diligently to meet the needs and aspirations of Bahrain’s citizens"

Manama, Sep. 18 (BNA): Crown Prince and First Deputy Prime Minister, His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa delivered the following speech at the Government Forum 2016 that brought together government executives from all levels to explore ways in which even greater sustainable diversification and economic prosperity can be delivered to meet citizens’ needs and aspirations. “His Royal Highness Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain Your Royal Highnesses, Your Excellencies, and distinguished guests Today’s launch of the Government Forum 2016, under the patronage of His Royal Highness the Prime Minister, marks an important milestone in our country’s journey. It has been eight years since His Majesty King Hamad launched Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030. And at the time, His Majesty stated that the core purpose of the vision is to serve citizens. This vision, a first for Bahrain, established the principles of sustainability, fairness and competitiveness as the framework for the Kingdom’s future development. The Government Forum 2016 brings together all levels of government executives not only to reflect on the achievements and progress made since then, but also to set our sights on the future. Your Royal Highness, distinguished guests By holding this forum, we also have the opportunity to examine and assess our reforms within the context of the global and regional challenges we have faced, and continue to address. These challenges include the global financial crisis that hit in 2008, regional events in 2011, as well as the unprecedented drop in global oil prices. While these have each presented severe challenges to development efforts, we remain determined to meet our citizens’ needs and aspirations. Indeed, Your Royal Highness’ commitment as well as the combined efforts of all Bahrainis has and continues to guide us in addressing development challenges – for we relish a challenge and have a passion for achievement. These efforts have led to the implementation of a series of initiatives that underpinned the Government Action Plans, which resulted in a range of meaningful achievements that have strengthened our economy and significantly improved living standards: · Our economy has grown by 28% from 2008 to 2015 · Diversification efforts have resulted in non-oil sectors now accounting for 80% of our GDP · Non-oil exports have increased three fold since 2008 · Privatisation initiatives have led to the private sector providing more than 80% of the Kingdom’s water and electricity production · Construction has begun on five substantial social housing projects to support His Majesty’s directives to deliver 40,000 housing units over the coming years This has culminated in increasing the average income of a Bahraini family by 47% since 2008. We are proud of these accomplishments over the past eight years, which represent the commitment of everyone within government – as well as the partnership of the Legislative Authority in further strengthening Bahrain’s path of prosperity. We have seen the launch of long-term economic strategies by our fellow GCC countries, which reinforces that we embarked on the right path by launching our own vision many years ago. Your Royal Highness, distinguished Guests It is our honour and responsibility to continue to work diligently to meet the needs and aspirations of Bahrain’s citizens. It is exactly this commitment that will underpin continued efforts to enhance government performance and deliver projects that translate the Vision 2030 goals into tangible results. There are three key priorities vital to Bahrain’s next phase of development: · First: To strengthen efforts to redefine the role of the public sector from the primary engine of economic growth into a private sector enabler and regulator · Second: To facilitate innovation and increase competitiveness. · Third: To continue to invest in citizens and further improve their living standards And in order to achieve these goals, it is essential to introduce tools across government, namely: · To enhance public services, mainly housing, healthcare, and education services · To enhance legislative and regulatory frameworks in order to strengthen our international competitiveness · To simplify government procedures · And to continue introducing substantial infrastructure development projects that meet our future needs In parallel to this, we must also align priorities across government, introduce detailed implementation plans, sustainable management of our resources to improve levels of efficiency and quality of public services, and enhance oversight and accountability of government departments.