Saudi Fund, Bahrain ink $62.3m deal

Manama : Bahrain yesterday signed three financing agreements worth $62.3 Million with the Saudi Fund for Development as part of (Phase III) of the Saudi grant extended to the Kingdom within the Gulf Development Programme.

The deals, on the sidelines of the 42nd Annual Meeting of the Islamic Development Bank Group in Jeddah, were signed by Shaikh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, the Minister of Finance, and Yousif bin Ebrahim Al Bassam, Vice President and Board Member of the Saudi Fund.

The current deal complements the previously signed deals worth $489m on 19 March 2017. The total value of grants extended to Bahrain by Saudi Arabia within the Gulf Development Programme is $1.7 billion. They are dedicated to financing projects in a wide range of sectors, namely Housing ($442m), Electricity & Water ($388m), Roads ($665m), Sewerage ($93m), Health ($58m), and Education ($85m).

As per the new deal, the first agreement will provide financing to improve the intersection of Shaikh Khalifa Bin Salman and Shaikh Isa Bin Salman Highways as well as King Fahd Causeway.

 The $44.5m payable under the agreement will allow increasing the number of lanes of Shaikh Khalifa Bin Salman Highway and better flow on one of the most vital traffic arteries in Bahrain, which serves areas such as Manama, Seef, Saar, Hamad Town, Riffa, University of Bahrain and the Bahrain International Circuit.

 The other two agreements will provide extra financing for the previously agreed Southern Governorate and Ramli Housing Projects, valued at$16.5m and $5.3m respectively.

 The Finance Minister said that the projects financed by the agreements would have a positive impact on people’s daily lives through developing the housing sector, improving the efficiency of road network and easing the traffic flow by reducing pressure on existing segments.