Cabinet praises Government Forum outcomes

Manama, Oct. 29 (BNA): His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa chaired 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 Premier, at the Gudaibiya Palace. Government Forum outcomes lauded The cabinet lauded the outcomes of the Government Forum 2018, held recently under the patronage of HRH the Prime Minister, at the initiative of HRH the Crown Prince, stressing the importance of the Forum’s results in enhancing government action, in terms of goals, priorities and achievements. It commended the efforts exerted to organise and ensure the success of the Forum in developing government work in accordance with the best practices, envisioning the Government Action Plan and improving the quality of government services to meet the satisfaction of the citizens, the ultimate goal of every government action, a post-session statement by the Cabinet Secretary-General, Dr. Yasser bin Isa Al-Nasser, said. GDA Conference 2018 hailed The session hailed the GDA International Downstream Conference and Exhibition (GDA Conference 2018), held recently under the auspices of HRH the Prime Minister and opened on his behalf by Deputy Premier, HH Shaikh Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa. The cabinet highlighted the importance of the event in transferring sciences and new technologies, keeping abreast of the latest developments in the refining and petrochemical industries, exchanging expertise and experiences, as well as in marketing. 14th Manama Dialogue praised The session praised the 14th IISS Regional Security Summit -the Manama Dialogue, describing it as a platform for exchanging ideas and views on various security and political issues and challenges in order to reach a common understanding on them and to develop common visions for future global cooperation on them. The cabinet hailed the broad international participation in the 14th IISS Manama Dialogue, noting that it reflects Bahrain’s weight and positive interaction with the International Community in facing security challenges and maintaining global stability. Bahrain hub for international events The session expressed its satisfaction with the increasing number of international events hosted by the Kingdom, including the 3rd FAI World Cup of Indoor Skydiving 2018 held at Gravity. The council commended the role of this tournament in enhancing Bahrain's position and fame in this sport worldwide, paying tribute to Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Khalifa, the Chairman of the Higher Committee of tournament, for his role in attracting such an important event to Bahrain. It also extended congratulations to the winners. Saudi Arabia congratulated on FII conference success The cabinet lauded the success of Saudi Arabia’s Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in which the kingdom participated with a high-level delegation, led by HRH the Crown Prince. The session praised Bahrain’s effective participation in the world event, and extended congratulations to sisterly Saudi Arabia on its outstanding success. The massive participation in the conference and the agreements and memoranda of understanding signed on its sidelines reflect Saudi Arabia’s economic weight, and FII’s global importance, the council said. UAE congratulated on successful satellite launch The cabinet extended sincere congratulations to the UAE President, government and people on the successful launch of first UAE-made satellite, KhalifaSat, to outer space. The session described the UAE satellite launch as a scientific milestone that adds to its achievements in the field of space science, expressing pride in the fact that the landmark achievement was 100 percent developed by Emirati expertise. Bahrain’s solidarity with Jordan expressed The session extended sincere condolences and sympathy to brotherly Jordan over the victims of the floods that hit the Dead Sea region. It affirmed Bahrain's solidarity with the Jordanian government and people, praying to Allah the Almighty to rest the souls of victims of the painful incident in eternal peace, and to bless the wounded with speedy recovery. Condolences extended to Indonesia The cabinet expressed regret and sadness over the Indonesian passenger plane crash, and extended deepest condolences and sympathy to friendly Indonesia -President, government and people- over the victims of the incident. It also expressed Bahrain’s solidarity with Indonesia in the face of such a tragic disaster. Pittsburgh synagogue shooting condemned The session condemned the shooting incident which had targeted a Jewish synagogue in the city of Pittsburgh, USA, killing and wounding several people. The council of ministers extended sincere sympathy and condolences to the American government and people, as well as the families of the victims. The cabinet described the incident as a heinous and inhuman crime that reflects an extremist and racist ideology, reiterating Bahrain’s principled stance against all crimes of terrorism and hatred, whatever their forms or motives are. 17 agreements, MoUs, executive programmes endorsed The session approved 17 agreements, memoranda of understanding and executive programmes signed with a number of brotherly countries, including four with the UAE and 13 with Egypt. Covering tourism, urban community’s development, environment protection, and climate affairs, the draft agreements with the UAE will be signed during the eighth meeting of the Joint Bahraini-UAE Committee. The agreements and MoUs with Egypt cover customs issues, mutual exemption of visas for holders of diplomatic and special passports, earthquakes, culture, antiquities, exportation development, joint exhibitions, parliament, the establishment of a joint committee for consular affairs, environmental protection, education, transportation and standardisation, agriculture and livestock. They will be signed during the 10th session of the Joint Bahraini-Egyptian Committee, due to be held next week. Ministries requested to submit reports on spending reduction programmes The cabinet instructed all ministries and government departments to submit reports to the Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs and Rationalisation of Expenditure on their achievements regarding their programmes to reduce in the short and medium terms. The reports will be included in a unified in a unified and integrated report on the results of the government’s achievements in reducing expenditure and increasing public revenues. In this regard, the session reviewed, through a presentation by Minister of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning, the achievements of his Ministry regarding the implementation of the cabinet’s resolution to reduce government expenditure. Thai nationals allowed to practise commercial activities in Dragon City The cabinet agreed to allow Thai nationals to carry out commercial activities by 100% ownership in the Dragon City mall, based a proposal by the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism. The request, which was approved by the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry, was submitted by the Diyar Al-Muharraq Company. The cabinet’s approval of the request is based on the strong partnership between Bahrain and Thailand, and aims to promote Bahrain’s status as a centre for storing, marketing and distributing the Thai products in the region. Foreign companies to be allowed 100% ownership in oil spill treatment services The session approved allowing 100% ownership of foreign companies and investors in the oil spill treatment services, in the light of a memorandum submitted by the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, and based on a proposal by the Minister of Oil. Two bills referred to Parliament The cabinet discussed two bills on amending Article (9) of Law 18/2006 on Social Insurance, and on adding a new article (Article 9 biz) to Law 60/2014 on IT Crimes, drafted on proposals by the Council of Representatives and the Shura Council, respectively. The two bills were referred to the Council of Representatives, along with a memorandum including the government’s opinion on each of them.