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Bahrain - A location of choice for international companies

Global Arab Network - - Sarah Khan

Monday, 02 November 2009 19:51

The plant director of Kraft Foods Bahrain has described the Kingdom of Bahrain as a location of choice for international companies looking to invest in the growing markets of the Middle East. Andrew Trevis made his comments at the 8th World Food Technology and Innovation 2009 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

In a speech on ‘improving manufacturing efficiency’, Trevis addressed some of the world’s foremost senior executives and decision-makers from the food technology and manufacturing industries. He said that Bahrain offered the ideal location to establish a base and from which to benefit from the region’s high levels of growth, forecast earlier this month by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to reach 4.2 percent in 2010 and rise to 4.8 percent in 2014.

“Bahrain is strategically located at the heart of the growing Middle East market, supported by the 25km King Fahd causeway to Saudi Arabia – the biggest Gulf market. And it offers 100 percent foreign ownership and a competitive, well-educated and highly-skilled national workforce. Simply put, Bahrain is an ideal location for international businesses to do business both in and from.”

The six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) alone represent a single market approaching one trillion US dollars in terms of GDP – the equivalent of India. And it is in the same breath as India and China that the Gulf is increasingly considered a third economic powerhouse in its own right and offering vast opportunities for foreign investment, according to Kamal Ahmed, Chief Operating Officer of the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB). The EDB, a public body, has overall responsibility for formulating and overseeing the economic strategy of the Kingdom and creating the right climate to attract foreign investment – demonstrating a commitment to continued growth of the GCC and Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region as a whole.

Ahmed added: “In the current economic climate it is important for companies to recognise the opportunities and prepare for renewed growth. The strong growth forecasts for the Middle East clearly show the region’s potential for investment. And people are now talking not only about China and India, but also the Gulf. Accessing this thriving market from a single location has never been easier or more profitable. And as the gateway to the Gulf, Bahrain has plenty to offer.”

The EDB’s efforts are central to Bahrain’s Vision 2030 and National Economic Strategy, designed to encourage the private sector to drive growth, support further diversification of the economy – already recognised as the most diversified in the Gulf – and ultimately elevate national living standards by creating greater opportunities for Bahrainis.

Kraft’s own move to Bahrain followed positive consultation with the EDB and its facilitation service which supports international companies in their assessment of market opportunities, setting-up and aftercare – including assistance in forming a network of contacts in the Kingdom and beyond. The world’s second largest food and beverage company, with annual sales for 2008 of $42 billion, had set out in 2006 to find a regional base having previously exported products to the region from Australia and the United States. Today, the factory is one of the largest in the GCC, producing 60,000 metric tonnes of products annually for the region.

Trevis, who has now been in Bahrain for more than three years, added that the state of the art plant has made enormous efficiency savings during the past year, with energy use per tonne falling by 25 percent; water by 50 percent; and waste by 16 percent. He also cited increased productivity with volume compliance figures rising from 80 percent to 99 percent and production compliance from 45 percent to 95 percent.

This year, Forbes – one of the most trusted information resources for the world’s business leaders – ranked Bahrain the best country fro business in the Gulf and 33rd of 127 economies worldwide in its Best Centres for Business 2009 report.

Global Arab Network

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