Industry and Commerce Minister Dr Hassan Fakhro yesterday launched the first Bahrainisation Information Seminar at the Bahrain International Investment Park in Salman Industrial City.

Dr Fakhro welcomed representatives of key agencies who addressed the seminar.

These include the Bahrain Investor Centre, Labour Market Regulatory Authority, Labour Ministry, Tamkeen, Social Insurance Organisation and the National Institute for Industrial Training.

The programme was designed to address a wide range of issues and to answer the most frequently asked questions from new companies that have established manufacturing operations here.

The minister welcomed the owners, directors and managers of the 70 companies who employ around 8,000 people at the Bahrain International Investment Park.

More than 40 per cent of these companies are from outside Bahrain.

The park now hosts companies from Germany, the US, Canada, Singapore, France, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India, Austria and Australia.

Dr Fakhro said these companies are adding a new dimension to Bahrain of the future by developing modern factories, installing and operating state-of-the-art machinery, transferring new technologies from abroad and providing a new generation of Bahrainis with new industrial skills.

He said he was constantly aware of how the experiences enjoyed by resident managers in Bahrain can influence the advice that they give to visiting companies investigating Bahrain as a potential GCC manufacturing and international services location in the future.

The minister acknowledged the role that these executives play in the international marketing of Bahrain and expressed his wish for the continuation of this partnership.-TradeArabia News Service