Focus on new economic sectors for jobs

Manama : Prime Minister HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa has given instructions to focus on new economic sectors that create job opportunities for Bahrainis. Prince Khalifa also urged to anticipate the Bahraini labour market to ensure its stability and ability to generate job under various economic circumstances.

The Prime Minister was commenting on the memorandum presented by Labour and Social Development Minister Jameel Humaidan in the Cabinet session here yesterday on the labour market’s indicators in the last quarter of 2015.

Figures revealed an annual increase in the overall size of the labour force in the Kingdom by 5.5pc. They also showed that the number of Bahraini workers in the public and private sectors had reached 158,000.

Chairing the session, HRH Premier praised the importance of the statistics provided by the Labour and Social Development Ministry in devising the government’s future plans regarding employment and the labour market initiatives.

“HRH Premier also directed to determine the basic needs of the town of Galali and ensure that there are sufficient sports, education and health facilitates, as well as roads and other services. The Prime Minister tasked the competent sides to follow up on the matter,” Cabinet Secretary General Dr. Yasser bin Isa Al-Nasser said in a statement following the session held at the Gudaibiya Palace.

New draft law on PCC

The session then discussed a new draft law on protected cell companies (PCC). A PCC is a corporate structure in which a single legal entity is comprised of a core and one or several cells, depending on the type and nature of the investment. The cells have separate assets and liabilities. PCCs help banks and financial institutions to establish various kinds of investment funds.

The draft law on PCC, highlighted in the memorandum presented by the Deputy Premier and Chairman of the Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs and Rationalising Expenditure Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, was referred to the Ministerial Committee for Legal Affairs.

The same committee will also have to examine a draft law on amending Law 64/2006 on the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) and Financial Institutions, outlined in another memorandum presented by the Deputy Premier and Chairman of the Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs and Rationalising Expenditure.

Under the amendments, the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) will be affiliated with CBB. They also stipulate that CBB will determine the fees levied on services delivered to the financial sectors. They also give more powers to the CBB External Director, including certain legal actions, such as sale or mortgage.

Pact with China

The session also discussed a draft agreement between Bahrain and China on mutual exemption from the requirements of visas for the holders of diplomatic and special passports. Under the draft agreements, holders of diplomatic, special or official passports in the two countries can receive free visas, for a maximum period of three months.

The draft agreement, included in the memorandum presented by Foreign Affairs Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, was referred to the Ministerial Committee for Legal Affairs.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet also discussed a number of proposals on establishing schools in some regions. 

They included a secondary girls’ school in the Southern Governorate’s Eighth Constituency and two primary schools, for boys and girls, in Zayed Town and a second boys’ school in Sitra.