FDI into Kingdom crosses BD106 million

Manama : Forty new companies invested a total of BD106 million ($281m) in 2016, the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB), the investment promotion agency of the Kingdom, said yesterday. These new companies are expected to generate a total of 1,647 jobs opportunities over the next three years.

The companies represent regional and international organisations, including companies from India, China, the United States, and Germany among others. 17 companies specialise in manufacturing and logistics, 7 in financial services, 7 in leisure and tourism, 7 in professional services and 2 in information and communication technology.

In terms of investments, the tourism sector attracted 75 per cent of total investments whilst the manufacturing and logistics sector accounted for 15 pc, and the financial services sector a further 9 pc. As a result, the total amount of investment attracted last year was double that of 2015, which stood at BD53.6 million invested by 22 companies.

 “Our success in doubling the investments during last year comes as a result of unifying our efforts with various government bodies,”said Khalid Al Rumaihi, Chief Executive of the EDB.

“Investors in Bahrain enjoy an attractive business environment that offers cost-effective operations, advanced infrastructure, as well as the abundance of an experienced bilingual workforce,” he said.

One of the companies attracted by the EDB includes Armacell, a world leader in flexible insulation foams. The company plans to invest around BD 6m on its new plant at Bahrain International Investment Park  which will produce elastomeric rubber insulation for the US$3 billion heating, ventilating, and air conditioning market in the GCC.

Furniture giant IKEA also announced its BD 48 million investment to establish its largest flagship store in the Gulf, covering a total area of 37,000 sqm. Various other companies including CIMC, Euroscot, Mukta A2 Cinemas, Ziraat Bank, Mastercard, Amazon Web Services and Palestine Investment Bank Bahrain have also established new investment projects in Bahrain.