Manama, June 21 (BNA) Minister of Industry and Trade Zayed Rashid Al-Zayani expressed his pride in the set of historical relations between Bahrain and India dating back more than 5,000 years, linking the civilizations of Dilmun. And Sindh, and has remained to this day clearly prominent on many levels and sectors, stressing the keenness of the two governments to maintain these relations.
The Minister made these statements during his participation as a keynote speaker at a luncheon organized by the Bahrain India Society, in the presence of Piyush Srivastava, Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Bahrain and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bahrain Indian Society Abdul Rahman. Friday And a number of members of the association and stakeholders.
During the lunch banquet held at the Gulf Hotel, a number of topics related to the historical relations between the two friendly countries were reviewed.
The minister reviewed a number of topics and issues of common interest, including the increase in the value of exports and imports between the two parties during the first quarter of 2022 and the number of companies and investors working in the Kingdom of Bahrain, where the total value of the current Indian investments in Bahrain amounted to $514 million.
He added that Bahrain is the ideal destination for Indian companies to take advantage of the excellent transport and communications links and its location among the GCC countries, in addition to its easy access to regional markets, the Middle East and North Africa.
He also indicated that preparations are underway to start negotiations for a free trade agreement between the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Republic of India, as the Gulf Cooperation Council countries have prepared a unified position on the proposed terms of reference for the free trade agreement, and negotiations will resume immediately upon the end of the agreement. The two sides finalized and signed the terms of reference.
The minister indicated that the Kingdom of Bahrain has recently witnessed a remarkable historical economic development, especially with the launch of its national strategy for economic recovery after the pandemic, which is based on the five main foundations of Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030.
He added that there are many improvements at the commercial level, such as the launch of the upgraded version of SIJILAT 3.0, in addition to new labor laws that are being modified with upcoming changes to trade laws and auditors and a new law being implemented to regulate e-commerce, as well as a focus on innovation and intellectual property where the work is going on To make Bahrain a global hub for these sectors.
A number of issues of common interest between the two sides were also reviewed.
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