3.9km coastal stretch proposed for public use in Northern Bahrain

A 3.9km public seafront stretching past four Northern Governorate villages is being sought as an open shore for families, fishermen and visitors, after years of calls to protect access to the coast. The proposed strip would run past Karranah, Jid Al Haj, Janusan and Barbar along Al Nakheel Highway, Northern Municipal Council chairman Sayed Shubber Al Wadaei said.

‘People have a right to access the coast under the law,’ he told The Daily Tribune, adding that the council wanted future plans to keep the area’s ties with fishing, pearl diving and village life. A government reply sent to the council in September 2021 said a public coast about 3,900 metres long had been proposed, with service areas expected for residents and visitors. The push to protect the shoreline dates back years.

Fishermen once used it as a launch point for fishing grounds and pearl-diving sites, while nearby villages relied on the sea for work and income. Al Wadaei described it as ‘a historic stretch of coast long tied to village life’. Community groups from Karranah, Jid Al Haj, Janusan and Barbar met at the municipal council in June 2018 and drew up a 14-point document covering public access, local services and protection of the villages’ coastal identity.

The Northern Municipal Council later adopted the findings and has continued to press for leisure areas, public access and space for fishermen. Environmental studies are also being carried out along the Al Nakheel Highway shoreline. A specialist company has met the council and gathered information on the coast, its natural features and nearby communities. But there is still no firm date for work to begin. Al Wadaei said the scheme was classed as a major government project, with decisions on funding, timing and delivery resting with the government.

The council is also dealing with rubbish, stranded boats, fishing gear and sand deposits around Barbar’s boat anchorage and fishermen’s channel. Fishermen agreed to form a local watch group to report littering and other breaches, while other steps included removing boats left on the shore, organising fish traps, providing waste bins and putting up warning signs.

The council has also asked the Supreme Council for Environment to discuss a fishermen-led plan to clear sand deposits that hinder boat movements. Al Wadaei said residents had waited years to see the shoreline brought back into public use. The aim, he said, was to give families room by the sea while preserving the villages’ long ties to fishing and the coast.