Jul 11 2014
Photo Credit:REUTERS/Charles Platiau
Friday, Jul 11, 2014
Manama: A new visa policy that allows nationals of more than 60 countries to obtain a visa on arrival in Bahrain has brought the total number of countries with such an option to nearly 100.
The new visa policy will be implemented in 2015 and it is a significant development, with the potential to affect over 2.5 billion people who can now obtain a one-month visa on arrival, with the ability to renew the visa for another three months, the
Bahrain Economic Development Board
(
EDB
) has said.
In particular, the new visa policy will further enable expatriates who do business in Bahrain to travel in and out of the Kingdom more easily, in an additional boost to the tourism industry, the
EDB
added.
Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, First Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the
EDB
, who presented the new visa policy at a Cabinet meeting, emphasised that reforms that supported the business environment in the Kingdom would help to continue to attract inward investment and drive forward economic growth and job creation.
The decision to revise the visa policy was taken based on key trends in the investor base in the Kingdom, including a 58 per cent increase in international investors who owned businesses in Bahrain between 2005 and 2012, and a 50 per cent increase in Arab investors with 17 per cent in non-residence equity owners.
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) World Investment Report 2014, released last month, confirmed that total foreign direct investment (FDI) into Bahrain in 2013 was $989 million (Dh3.6 billion), an increase of 11 per cent on 2012, outpacing global average growth of 9 per cent.
“Throughout history, Bahrain’s economic progress has been built on a tradition of openness, based around its role as an established hub for trade and investment,” Kamal Bin Ahmad, Minister of Transportation and Acting Chief Executive of the Bahrain
EDB
, said. “The new visa policy — one of the most flexible visa policies in the region — follows that tradition, enabling citizens from more than 100 countries to enjoy easier and quicker access to the Middle East’s most open economy, as ranked by the Heritage Foundation’s 2014 Index of Economic Freedom.”
By Habib Toumi Bureau Chief
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