Bahrain prime minister to talk economics with Egypt
Bahrain, Economics, 9/9/1997

Bahrain Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman al Khalifa will be paying a four day state visit to Egypt at the invitation of his Egyptian counterpart Kamal Al Ganzouri.

The visit, the first in ten years by the Bahrain prime minister to Cairo, will take a place on September 16. The main object of his visit is economic, especially for the tourists sector which has been the main source of income for Bahrain.

Sheikh Khalifa's visit is taking place on the tail of recent success achieved by Bahrain in the field of tourism. Over 2.6 million tourists visited Bahrain so far this year, compared to three million in Egypt, 1.7 million in Dubai and 300.000 in Lebanon. This places Bahrain second after Egypt in amount of tourists.

The Bahrain senior official will also discuss the latest political developments in the region with the Egyptian leaders. He is expected to examine closely the successful economic plan adopted by Egypt.

Well-informed sources revealed that Bahrain will be issuing a number of significant decisions shortly. The sources said that motivated by the remarkable economic improvement, next month Bahrain will issue a new law for commercial agencies. The new law will liberalize agency ownership so they are free, with the providers, to keep agreements without any additional mandatory conditions.

Sources close to the Bahrain prime minister attributed increased tourism to a decision by Bahrainian authorities for granting visit visas at various terminals, thus saving tourists from the trouble of having to apply for visas prior to arrival.

The sources said that Bahrain authorities are bent on improving this decision to allow foreigners who hold visit visas to any GCC member state to visit Bahrain by obtaining a visa upon arrival. With this step Bahrain will deal with GCC visas like the united visa in Europe. Currently, legal residents in GCC states are allowed to visit Bahrain and obtain the necessary visa upon arrival

Bahrain is currently considering the positions of offshore companies with an aim to be like those in Panama and Liberia.

Bahrain has recently witnessed the opening of many commercial centers offering high class imported goods at prices lower than in their manufacturing countries because of taxes. In this connection, British department stores Marks and Spencer will be opening a branch in Manama.

Previous Stories:
  Bahraini restaurant burned by unknown men   (9/1/1997)
  Bahrain oil production increased   (8/30/1997)
  Better Bahrain-Iran relations   (8/28/1997)

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