A group of industrialists have come together to form an association for enterprises within the Salman Industrial City at Hidd.

The brainchild of Glasstech Industries chairman Darwish A Mannai, the association has got in-principle approvals from various government agencies and is now awaiting the completion of registration and issuance of a licence.

Once the licence is issued, the association members will convene a general assembly to elect a chairman and board members, Mr Mannai told the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

The announcement follows a formation meeting at the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP), which saw the appointment of a committee for completing the procedure of setting up the association.

The committee will be dissolved when the new office bearers take charge.

Besides Mannai, the committee members are Baytik Industrial Oasis chairman Osama Al Khajah, Ameeri Industries public relations manager Abdulla Janahi and Gulf Shade assistant general manager Yusuf Ahmed.

The non-profit organisation would eventually work as a representative body not just for industries in Salman Industrial City, but also for industries elsewhere in the kingdom.

"The association's objectives are: Identifying challenges facing industrialists and proposing solutions; co-ordinating with authorities on legislation and policies related to the sector; proposing means of protecting industrialists and investors against foreign competition and discouraging import and sale of foreign-made goods at prices substantially below domestic prices, also known as anti-dumping measures and laws," Mannai said.

"It also includes Supporting Bahrain Sub-Contracting and Partnership Exchange (BSPX), building an industrial database, running awareness programmes on quality standards for manufacturing and environment, and promoting employment of Bahraini nationals," he added. -TradeArabia News Service